Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) COO Jason Craft Sells 1,500 Shares

Key Points

• Waste Connections COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares on June 5 at an average price of $156.59, totaling about $234,885. After the sale, he still held 32,861 shares valued at roughly $5.15 million.
• The stock rose 2.6% in Tuesday trading to $157.63, near its 50-day moving average, while remaining below its 200-day average and 52-week high.
• Waste Connections recently beat quarterly EPS estimates with $1.23 per share, and it continues to pay a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, equal to a 0.9% annual yield.

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $234,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 32,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Waste Connections Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:WCN traded up $3.92 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $157.63. The company had a trading volume of 1,526,850 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,657,904. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $157.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $165.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.45, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.51. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $146.89 and a one year high of $192.72.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. The business's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is 34.15%.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at $697,519,000. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 28.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 6,468,259 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,134,781,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420,921 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,763,742 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $835,370,000 after acquiring an additional 1,289,042 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 39.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,455,162 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $783,218,000 after acquiring an additional 1,264,150 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 48.7% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,724,204 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $604,573,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,056 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Waste Connections from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $208.00 target price (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $197.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $202.84.

About Waste Connections

Waste Connections NYSE: WCN is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company's operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.

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