XTX Topco Ltd Buys 5,746 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. by 39.6% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 5,746 shares and bringing its total ownership to 20,271 shares valued at approximately $3.96 million.
• Several hedge funds have modified their holdings in Waste Connections, making institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock, with notable increases from firms like LPL Financial LLC and Arrowstreet Capital.
• Research analysts maintain a generally positive outlook on Waste Connections, with an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.00, following recent upgrades in ratings and price objectives from firms like Oppenheimer and BMO Capital Markets.

XTX Topco Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 39.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,271 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,746 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $3,957,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WCN. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 37.3% in the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,796 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 488 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Waste Connections by 89.5% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 288 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 19.2% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,069 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,379,000 after buying an additional 1,137 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 41.0% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 19,710 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,843,000 after purchasing an additional 5,733 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 6.3% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 28,458 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,555,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Waste Connections stock traded down $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $186.64. The company had a trading volume of 1,129,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,149,814. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.36 and a 52 week high of $201.66. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $187.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $188.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.60. 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 (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WCN. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $202.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. William Blair began coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Truist Financial set a $220.00 price target on Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Melius began coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Monday, June 9th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.00.

About Waste Connections

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.