Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Oppenheimer Analyst Says

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by Oppenheimer from $216.00 to $218.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "outperform" rating on the business services provider's stock. Oppenheimer's price target would indicate a potential upside of 18.85% from the company's previous close.

WCN has been the topic of a number of other research reports. CIBC dropped their price target on Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperformer" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Melius Research raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $213.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Seaport Res Ptn raised Waste Connections to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $213.93.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:WCN traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $183.43. 1,389,814 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,021,279. The firm's fifty day moving average is $189.72 and its 200-day moving average is $187.78. Waste Connections has a 12-month low of $169.36 and a 12-month high of $201.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.74% and a net margin of 6.93%. Waste Connections's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.04 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 122.0% during the first quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 994.4% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Global Financial Private Client LLC grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 890.0% during the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.