Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC invested approximately $2.46 million in Waste Connections, acquiring 12,575 shares in the first quarter of the year.
• Several institutional investors, including Ramirez Asset Management and Larson Financial Group, have significantly increased their stakes in Waste Connections, reflecting strong institutional interest.
• Waste Connections has been rated "strong-buy" by analysts, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $215.00.

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 12,575 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,455,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Waste Connections by 3.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,247,244 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,901,049,000 after purchasing an additional 954,242 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 0.3% during the first quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 6,383,780 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,230,984,000 after acquiring an additional 18,400 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 5.8% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 4,575,547 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $892,023,000 after acquiring an additional 250,684 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.7% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,863,120 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $754,042,000 after acquiring an additional 100,716 shares during the period. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.3% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,819,259 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $744,420,000 after acquiring an additional 120,752 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of WCN stock traded up $1.86 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $185.10. The stock had a trading volume of 690,040 shares, compared to its average volume of 943,188. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $169.36 and a one year high of $201.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $185.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $189.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.64, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.61.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 6.97%.The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.24 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Waste Connections has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Melius Research raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, June 9th. Atb Cap Markets raised Waste Connections from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Waste Connections from $216.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Waste Connections from $221.00 to $219.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reduced their target price on Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has a consensus 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.