Blue Trust Inc. Cuts Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Blue Trust Inc. decreased its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 40.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,636 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,116 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $287,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 144,756 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $24,899,000 after purchasing an additional 8,505 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 591.5% in the 1st quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,881 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,700,000 after purchasing an additional 8,452 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in Waste Connections during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,986,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 17.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 58,066 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,988,000 after purchasing an additional 8,632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Waste Connections by 1.0% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 317,220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,106 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.15, for a total transaction of $180,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,428.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $2,902,215.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.15, for a total transaction of $180,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $778,428.15. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,600 shares of company stock worth $3,842,550. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on WCN. Truist Financial raised their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Eight Capital raised Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $194.19.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE WCN opened at $178.60 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $126.12 and a 1 year high of $187.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $46.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.97, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $182.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $175.05.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 15.16%. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.17 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.01%.

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.