Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Makes New $1.01 Million Investment in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group initiated a $1.01 million position in Waste Connections during the second quarter, buying 6,054 shares. Institutional investors collectively own 86.09% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Waste Connections receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $200.89, above its reported share price of $165.66.
• Waste Connections beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $1.50 EPS and $2.56 billion in revenue, while announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.35. Company insiders, however, sold 11,811 shares worth approximately $1.89 million over the prior three months.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 6,054 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,009,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 1,166.7% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 346.2% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WCN. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $199.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $211.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $200.89.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, SVP Robert Michael Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,995,119.32. The trade was a 19.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total value of $234,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. The trade was a 4.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 11,811 shares of company stock worth $1,887,572 in the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $165.66 on Wednesday. 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 business's 50 day simple moving average is $165.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.92, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.48. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $188.75.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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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