DNB Asset Management AS Has $10.81 Million Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• DNB Asset Management AS cut its Waste Connections stake by 54% in the fourth quarter, selling 72,222 shares and leaving it with 61,644 shares valued at about $10.81 million.
• Waste Connections reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $1.23, though revenue of $2.33 billion came in below analyst estimates. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, or $1.40 annually.
• Analysts remain generally upbeat on the stock, with a consensus Buy rating and an average price target of $203.35, even as some recent insider sales and mixed ratings updates appeared in the report.

DNB Asset Management AS reduced its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 54.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,644 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 72,222 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $10,810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,042 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $533,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.6% in the third quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 2,556 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 919 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $161,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. RDA Financial Network lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 2,459 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 4.3% in the third quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of WCN stock opened at $156.70 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $161.56 and a 200-day moving average of $167.22. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $148.84 and a one year high of $198.00. The company has a market cap of $40.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.55.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. The business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 6th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is presently 34.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Eric Hansen sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.82, for a total transaction of $988,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,200,347. This represents a 31.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP James Little sold 2,605 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.98, for a total transaction of $427,167.90. Following the sale, the vice president owned 34,395 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,640,092.10. The trade was a 7.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Waste Connections from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $212.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays set a $180.00 target price on Waste Connections and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $203.35.

About Waste Connections

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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