IFM Investors Pty Ltd Buys 4,447 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 8.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,624 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,447 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $9,947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% in the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 222 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 890.0% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WCN has been the topic of several recent research reports. William Blair initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $212.29.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN traded down $1.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $181.14. 1,361,447 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,014,752. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $190.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.54, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.70. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $169.36 and a one year high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 6.93%. The company's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th were issued a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.85%.

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.