Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Coverage Initiated at Melius Research

Analysts at Melius Research started coverage on shares of Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a "buy" rating and a $213.00 price target on the business services provider's stock. Melius Research's price target points to a potential upside of 12.80% from the stock's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Truist Financial set a $220.00 price target on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Melius assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Monday. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $212.29.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of WCN stock traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $188.84. The company had a trading volume of 228,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 998,850. The company has a market cap of $48.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $193.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.59. Waste Connections has a 12 month low of $165.20 and a 12 month high of $201.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The company had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.04 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Connections will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% during the fourth 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 during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% in 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

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.

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