Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) is Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s 4th Largest Position

Baskin Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 291,919 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 2,428 shares during the period. Waste Connections accounts for approximately 4.6% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Baskin Financial Services Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Waste Connections worth $56,893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 5,066 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $869,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 60.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,438 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares during the period. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 30.8% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,521 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $604,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of WCN stock traded up $1.75 during trading on Friday, reaching $179.85. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,360,724 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,010,285. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.36 and a 1-year high of $201.66. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $191.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $187.35. The company has a market capitalization of $46.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.93% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.04 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th were issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on WCN shares. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.29.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections, Inc provides non-hazardous waste collection, transfer, disposal, and resource recovery services in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services to residential, commercial, municipal, industrial, and exploration and production (E&P) customers; landfill disposal services; and recycling services for various recyclable materials, including compost, cardboard, mixed paper, plastic containers, glass bottles, and ferrous and aluminum metals.