Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB

MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB decreased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 17.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,514 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 7,921 shares during the quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $7,127,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WCN. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $221.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $212.23.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of WCN stock traded up $2.87 during trading on Friday, reaching $197.26. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,968,018 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,011,360. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $161.13 and a 1-year high of $201.66. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $194.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $187.35. The company has a market capitalization of $50.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

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

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th were given a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.85%.

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.