Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) PT Lowered to $195.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $196.00 to $195.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, BayStreet.CA reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the business services provider's stock. Royal Bank of Canada's price target indicates a potential upside of 19.24% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on WCN. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waste Connections from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Waste Connections from $146.50 to $179.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Atb Cap Markets lowered Waste Connections from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $179.33.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Waste Connections stock traded down $1.65 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $163.53. 1,086,551 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 915,341. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day moving average of $168.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.10. Waste Connections has a 12 month low of $126.12 and a 12 month high of $173.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

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. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 14.76%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total transaction of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Waste Connections by 58.5% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,152 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $155,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 114,756 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $15,412,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Carderock Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Carderock Capital Management Inc. now owns 36,806 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $4,943,000 after buying an additional 1,529 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 26,254 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,526,000 after buying an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,771 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,178,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

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.