Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado Trims Stock Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado trimmed its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,319,916 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 89,598 shares during the quarter. Waste Connections makes up about 0.9% of Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado owned 0.51% of Waste Connections worth $226,471,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 153.3% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE WCN traded up $1.10 on Friday, hitting $197.28. The stock had a trading volume of 309,638 shares, compared to its average volume of 972,223. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.34 and a 52-week high of $201.66. The business's fifty day moving average price is $191.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $185.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $50.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 82.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.67.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.06. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.04 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be given a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is currently 51.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on WCN. StockNews.com downgraded Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $221.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $209.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $208.21.

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.