SG Americas Securities LLC Grows Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 337.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 94,740 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 73,106 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $16,941,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Trust grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,573 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $276,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.9% during the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 1,842 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Waste Connections by 8.8% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 916 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 5,966 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,047,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $475,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. CIBC raised their target price on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an “outperformer” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.53.

Waste Connections Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE WCN traded down $1.70 on Friday, hitting $176.41. 715,005 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 898,020. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $126.12 and a 52-week high of $187.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $181.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $174.05.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.07. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.23%. The business had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were given a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 7th. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total transaction of $401,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,226 shares in the company, valued at $214,243.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $2,902,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 48,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,706,466.95. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total value of $401,925.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,226 shares in the company, valued at approximately $214,243.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,600 shares of company stock worth $3,842,550 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.31% 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.