Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Acquires 71 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 59.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $33,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 705 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 14,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 58.0% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 226 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,515 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $271,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 29,220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,014,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

WCN stock opened at $183.28 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $182.54. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $160.34 and a twelve month high of $194.83. The firm has a market cap of $47.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.68, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 52.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on WCN shares. CIBC dropped their price target on Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.43.

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.