Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Stock Price Down 2.2%

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) shares dropped 2.2% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $160.85 and last traded at $162.47. Approximately 413,927 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 897,002 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Atb Cap Markets lowered shares of Waste Connections from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. CIBC upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday, April 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $196.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.87.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

The company's 50 day moving average is $168.32 and its 200-day moving average is $151.83. The company has a market capitalization of $42.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.51% and a return on equity of 14.42%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. Waste Connections's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.51%.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the 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 filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Equitable Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 18,259 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,141,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 37,500 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,450,000 after acquiring an additional 2,900 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 1st quarter valued at about $315,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 43.4% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 30,128 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,182,000 after acquiring an additional 9,115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 128.1% during the 1st quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 2,149 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.

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