Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at National Bank Financial

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at National Bank Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports. National Bank Financial also issued estimates for Waste Connections' Q2 2025 earnings at $1.26 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.46 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.38 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $5.24 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.79 EPS.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on WCN. Morgan Stanley raised their price target 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. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $221.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $197.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.23.

Waste Connections Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE WCN traded up $2.87 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $197.26. 1,968,018 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,010,369. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.54, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. Waste Connections has a twelve month low of $161.13 and a twelve month high of $201.66.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth $687,935,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the 1st quarter worth $623,155,000. FIL Ltd grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 46.2% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 7,177,724 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,231,368,000 after acquiring an additional 2,269,652 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth $240,422,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,247,244 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,901,049,000 after acquiring an additional 954,242 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

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.