Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D has reduced its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. by 7.5%, now owning 83,951 shares worth approximately $16.4 million.
• During the first quarter, several hedge funds significantly increased their stakes in Waste Connections, with Ramirez Asset Management Inc. growing its position by 122%.
• Waste Connections recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.315 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.7%, and has a consensus rating of "Buy" from analysts.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 83,951 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,776 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $16,386,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Waste Connections by 122.0% in the first quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 994.4% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Global Financial Private Client LLC boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 232.3% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 216 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Louisbourg Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 128.6% in the 1st quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. now owns 240 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.0%

WCN stock opened at $184.78 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $47.75 billion, a PE ratio of 74.51, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.36 and a 1 year high of $201.66. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $185.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $189.61.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.97% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The business's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $221.00 to $219.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $216.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $215.00.

Waste Connections 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.

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