Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Acquires 3,199 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 136.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,539 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,199 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $950,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WCN. Norges Bank bought a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at $687,935,000. FIL Ltd increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 46.2% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 7,177,724 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,231,368,000 after buying an additional 2,269,652 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 307.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,927,155 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $344,615,000 after buying an additional 1,453,733 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth approximately $240,422,000. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,949,152 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,020,672,000 after purchasing an additional 899,058 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock traded down $1.92 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $195.71. 252,333 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 973,948. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.36 and a 200-day moving average of $185.25. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.34 and a 1 year high of $201.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. Waste Connections's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial set a $220.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $221.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $208.21.

About Waste Connections

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.