Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Acquired by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 34.3%, acquiring an additional 80,560 shares, which makes Waste Connections the 22nd biggest position in its portfolio.
• Research analysts have given Waste Connections a consensus rating of "Buy" with a price target of $215.00, indicating strong market confidence in the company's performance.
• Waste Connections recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.315, which will yield an annualized return of 0.7% based on its current stock price.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 34.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 315,162 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 80,560 shares during the quarter. Waste Connections comprises 1.1% of iA Global Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. iA Global Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.12% of Waste Connections worth $61,516,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Waste Connections by 122.0% during the first quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Waste Connections by 994.4% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Global Financial Private Client LLC increased its position 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 worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 232.3% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 216 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of WCN stock traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $187.87. 692,018 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,310,019. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.58. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $169.36 and a one year high of $201.66. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $186.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $189.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 6.97%. The business had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 6th will be given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 6th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 50.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WCN. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.00.

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.