Meyer Handelman Co. Makes New Investment in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Meyer Handelman Co. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 6,049 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,040,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $592,392,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 20.5% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,294,922 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,516,908,000 after purchasing an additional 1,920,302 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,364,071 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $651,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320,933 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 57.7% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,500,718 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $522,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281,418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 235.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,153,882 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $172,240,000 after acquiring an additional 809,914 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of WCN stock opened at $174.61 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $166.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $161.23. The firm has a market cap of $45.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.69, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.70. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $126.12 and a 1 year high of $175.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 9.70%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WCN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $182.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $189.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $217.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Five 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total transaction of $169,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $899,249. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total transaction of $169,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 5,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $899,249. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael W. Harlan sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.59, for a total value of $251,385.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,004 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,341,390.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $752,385 over the last quarter. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.