Royal Bank of Canada Reduces Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada has reduced its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. by 1.3%, now owning approximately 10.6 million shares valued at $2.07 billion, representing about 4.11% of the company's stock.
• Several other institutional investors significantly increased their positions in Waste Connections during the first quarter, with some reporting increases of over 900%.
• Waste Connections declared a quarterly dividend of $0.315, with a current dividend yield of 0.7% and a payout ratio of 50.81%.

Royal Bank of Canada decreased its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,624,320 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 135,441 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 4.11% of Waste Connections worth $2,073,762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MAI Capital Management grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 1,116 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $218,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 464,005 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $90,569,000 after buying an additional 11,914 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 69.6% in the 1st quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 2,276 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $444,000 after buying an additional 934 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,455,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 56.2% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,147,904 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $223,779,000 after buying an additional 413,212 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Down 1.1%

Waste Connections stock traded down $2.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $182.77. 1,271,623 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 911,870. The company's fifty day moving average price is $184.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.28. The company has a market cap of $47.23 billion, a PE ratio of 73.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Waste Connections, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.36 and a fifty-two week high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 6.97%.Waste Connections's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.24 EPS. Waste Connections has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WCN. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Waste Connections from $202.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Melius Research raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Melius began coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Five 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $215.00.

Waste Connections Company 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.