Saudi Central Bank Increases Stock Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Key Points

• Saudi Central Bank increased its Waste Connections stake by 89.4% in the second quarter, purchasing 8,448 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 17,898 shares valued at approximately $2.98 million.
• Institutional investors own 86.09% of Waste Connections, while two senior vice presidents recently sold shares, reducing their holdings substantially.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $200.89. The company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $1.50 in EPS and $2.56 billion in revenue.

Saudi Central Bank grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 89.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,898 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,448 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 346.2% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Group One Trading LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its position in Waste Connections by 1,166.7% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new position in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Robert Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total transaction of $480,737.22. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,995,119.32. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.57, for a total value of $416,425.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $122,262.38. This represents a 77.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WCN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $176.00 target price (up from $170.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $199.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $200.89.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of WCN stock opened at $164.85 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $41.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.72, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.48. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.89 and a 52 week high of $181.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $167.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.11.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 10.86%.The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.29 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.73%.

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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