National Pension Service Increases Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• National Pension Service increased its stake in Waste Connections by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, adding 17,523 shares and bringing its total holding to 402,969 shares valued at about $70.7 million.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on WCN, with a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $203.35; several analysts recently reiterated or adjusted bullish ratings.
• The company reported mixed quarterly results, beating EPS estimates at $1.23 but missing revenue expectations with $2.33 billion, while also maintaining a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share.

National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 402,969 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 17,523 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.16% of Waste Connections worth $70,665,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,911,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 19.5% during the third quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 163,675 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,780,000 after acquiring an additional 26,684 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,908,000. Trium Capital LLP bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,995,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 770.4% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,519 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $10,112,000 after acquiring an additional 50,911 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WCN shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Barclays set a $180.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $212.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, March 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $203.35.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCN opened at $149.13 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $38.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.55. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $148.84 and a 52 week high of $197.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $158.96 and a 200 day moving average of $166.29.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. Waste Connections's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections's payout ratio is 34.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Connections news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt acquired 50,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,017 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. This represents a 19.92% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric Hansen sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.82, for a total transaction of $988,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,200,347. This trade represents a 31.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Waste Connections

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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