Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Purchased by Harbor Investment Advisory LLC

Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 1,022.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,210 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,835 shares during the quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $821,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 14,247 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 222 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its stake in Waste Connections by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 290 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Waste Connections by 59.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 1,562 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of WCN traded down $1.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $190.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 692,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,003,479. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $165.20 and a 1-year high of $201.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $193.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.59.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.04 earnings per share. Waste Connections's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th were issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WCN. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 26th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, William Blair initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.23.

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.