Bamco Inc. NY Makes New Investment in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Bamco Inc. NY purchased 193,920 shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter, worth approximately $32.3 million, giving it a 0.08% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 86.09% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.89, compared with the stock’s reported price of $167.32.
• Waste Connections exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.50 in EPS versus a $1.35 estimate and $2.56 billion in revenue, up 6.4% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, yielding 0.8% annually.

Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 193,920 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $32,325,000. Bamco Inc. NY owned approximately 0.08% of Waste Connections at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the first quarter worth $577,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 12.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 219,290 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,946,000 after purchasing an additional 24,948 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.9% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 24,463 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $4,572,000 after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter worth $2,714,000. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 1.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,808,631 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $337,708,000 after purchasing an additional 17,197 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In related news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total transaction of $1,171,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,084,103.62. This trade represents a 27.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total value of $416,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $122,262.38. This represents a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,311 shares of company stock worth $2,303,997. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on WCN shares. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $176.00 price objective (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $200.89.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.7%

WCN stock opened at $167.32 on Thursday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $146.89 and a 1-year high of $185.33. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $167.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.09 billion, a PE ratio of 40.32, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.48.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 10.86%.The business had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.73%.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections NYSE: WCN is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company's operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.

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