Impax Asset Management Group plc Cuts Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Impax Asset Management Group plc cut its stake in Waste Connections by 26.3% in Q4, selling 172,106 shares and retaining 481,705 shares worth about $84.47 million (≈0.19% of the company).
• Waste Connections beat Q1 EPS estimates with $1.23 per share, management expects roughly $100M of M&A revenue to close by end-Q2/early-Q3 and reaffirmed 2026 free cash flow guidance of $1.4B–$1.45B, while analysts (including JPMorgan raising its target to $210) maintain a bullish consensus.

Impax Asset Management Group plc lessened its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 481,705 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 172,106 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned approximately 0.19% of Waste Connections worth $84,472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $30,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 555.2% during the third quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 121.9% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 304 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Waste Connections

Here are the key news stories impacting Waste Connections this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on WCN to $210 and moved to an "overweight" rating, implying substantial upside vs. current levels. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects roughly $100M of M&A revenue to close by end of Q2 or early Q3 and reaffirmed 2026 free cash flow guidance of $1.4B–$1.45B — supports the company’s cash-generation story and buyout/investment optionality. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Q1 earnings: WCN reported EPS of $1.23, beating consensus (~$1.19), reinforcing underlying profitability per-share despite cost/mix headwinds. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share (record May 6, payable May 21); yield is modest (~0.8%) and unlikely to materially change investor stance. (Company announcement)
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings-call and deep-dive coverage highlight pricing actions, AI initiatives and special-waste campaign results — strategic positives but with timing/scale uncertainty. Article Title Earnings Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Net profit fell to US$219.3M in Q1 from US$241.5M a year ago and management discussed margin pressure — investors may be worried about near-term margin compression and revenue mix. Article Title

Waste Connections Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of WCN stock opened at $165.80 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $164.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.83. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $154.90 and a twelve month high of $199.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $42.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.44, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.61.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. Waste Connections's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WCN has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $199.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. UBS Group set a $205.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Monday, January 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $212.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $203.15.

Waste Connections Company Profile

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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