Zacks Research Issues Pessimistic Outlook for WCN Earnings

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lowered their Q1 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Waste Connections in a research report issued on Wednesday, March 5th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the business services provider will post earnings per share of $1.01 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.17. The consensus estimate for Waste Connections’ current full-year earnings is $5.28 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Waste Connections’ Q2 2025 earnings at $1.35 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.49 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.34 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.37 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.86 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $6.72 EPS.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on WCN. Scotiabank cut their price target on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $205.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.43.

Waste Connections Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $185.72 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $47.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. Waste Connections has a 12-month low of $160.34 and a 12-month high of $194.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $182.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $182.51.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 52.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WCN. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.