Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Position Increased by Sirios Capital Management L P

Key Points

• Sirios Capital Management L P increased its stake in Waste Connections by 319.1% in Q3, adding 58,408 shares to hold 76,713 shares valued at $13.49 million (about 1.8% of its portfolio and its 20th largest holding).
• Other institutions also upped exposure—Wellington Management boosted its position to 4.455 million shares—and institutional ownership of WCN is high at 86.09%.
• Analysts are broadly positive: the consensus rating is "Buy" with an average target price of $203.52, and several firms have set targets in the $197–$205 range.

Sirios Capital Management L P raised its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 319.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,713 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 58,408 shares during the quarter. Waste Connections comprises approximately 1.8% of Sirios Capital Management L P's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Sirios Capital Management L P's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $13,486,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 39.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,455,162 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $783,218,000 after purchasing an additional 1,264,150 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,599,000. Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 496.1% during the 3rd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 86,656 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $15,234,000 after purchasing an additional 72,119 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 709,903 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $124,774,000 after acquiring an additional 28,053 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 13.6% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 268,326 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,172,000 after buying an additional 32,106 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on WCN. Scotiabank set a $197.00 target price on Waste Connections and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Friday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $199.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $203.52.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE WCN opened at $166.51 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $155.65 and a 1-year high of $201.66. The company has a 50 day moving average of $167.64 and a 200-day moving average of $171.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $42.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.93, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.62.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.The company had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. Waste Connections's revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.57%.

Waste Connections Company Profile

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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