PFG Advisors Sells 16,265 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• PFG Advisors cut its stake in Waste Connections by 53.4% in Q4, selling 16,265 shares and retaining 14,214 shares worth $2.493 million.
• Wall Street sentiment is positive: the stock has a consensus Buy rating with a consensus price target of $202.81, with individual targets ranging roughly $176–$212.
• Waste Connections opened at $157.94 (52‑week range $154.90–$199.78), reported a slight EPS beat ($1.29 vs. $1.28) for the quarter, and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.35 (annualized $1.40, yield 0.9%).

PFG Advisors cut its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 53.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,214 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 16,265 shares during the quarter. PFG Advisors' holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,493,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 555.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 121.9% during the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 304 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WCN. Morgan Stanley set a $205.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $205.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday, January 5th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $212.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays set a $176.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.81.

Waste Connections Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $157.94 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.61. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $154.90 and a 52-week high of $199.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. The company's 50 day moving average price is $164.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.98.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.37 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections's payout ratio is 33.57%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.