Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Trims Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Gamco Investors INC. ET AL has reduced its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. by 11.3%, selling 11,768 shares to hold 92,241 shares valued at approximately $18 million.
• A variety of institutional investors have significantly increased their positions in Waste Connections, with some raising holdings by as much as 994.4% in the first quarter.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.315 per share, resulting in an annual yield of 0.7% and a payout ratio of 50.81%.

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL trimmed its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 11.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 92,241 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 11,768 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $18,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 122.0% in the first quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 994.4% in the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 890.0% in the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 232.3% in the first quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 216 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisbourg Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 128.6% in the first quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 240 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $182.76 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $185.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $189.47. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.36 and a 52-week high of $201.66. The firm has a market cap of $47.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.58.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Connections has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 6th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WCN. Melius began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $221.00 to $219.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.00.

About Waste Connections

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.

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