Brokerages Set Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Target Price at $179.33

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the sixteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $179.33.

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group lowered Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $181.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. CIBC increased their target price on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Atb Cap Markets lowered Waste Connections from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th.

Waste Connections Stock Down 1.5 %

Waste Connections stock traded down $2.48 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $162.17. 1,056,486 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 914,689. Waste Connections has a 1-year low of $126.12 and a 1-year high of $173.02. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $168.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market cap of $41.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 9.70%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Waste Connections will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total transaction of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at $592,392,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 20.5% in the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,294,922 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,516,908,000 after purchasing an additional 1,920,302 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 43.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,364,071 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $651,427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320,933 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,500,718 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $522,988,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281,418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 235.5% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,153,882 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $172,240,000 after purchasing an additional 809,914 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.