Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Stock Holdings Lifted by IFM Investors Pty Ltd

Key Points

• IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in Waste Connections by 5.1% during the second quarter, holding 52,337 shares valued at approximately $9.77 million.
• Various institutional investors have significantly boosted their positions in Waste Connections, with some raising holdings by as much as 994.4% in the first quarter.
• Waste Connections recently announced a $0.315 quarterly dividend, resulting in an annual yield of 0.7% and a payout ratio of approximately 50.81%.

IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 52,337 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,526 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $9,772,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Waste Connections by 122.0% in the first quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 994.4% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 890.0% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisbourg Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 128.6% in the 1st quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 240 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WCN shares. Barclays started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $192.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Waste Connections from $221.00 to $219.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Melius Research raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $213.00.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:WCN traded down $1.26 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $172.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 851,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,133,186. The firm has a market cap of $44.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.36 and a 1 year high of $201.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $183.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $188.23.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The firm 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 firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. Waste Connections's revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Connections has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Waste Connections 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.