Carderock Capital Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Carderock Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 28.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,212 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 13,223 shares during the period. Carderock Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $5,824,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at about $755,938,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 39.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,455,162 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $783,218,000 after buying an additional 1,264,150 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 17.6% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 6,136,218 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,078,536,000 after buying an additional 918,245 shares during the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter valued at about $140,935,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Waste Connections by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,585,284 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,552,682,000 after acquiring an additional 717,440 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Waste Connections from $220.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Monday, November 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $202.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $183.00 price target (down from $196.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 price target (down from $219.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $197.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.52.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of WCN opened at $162.36 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $167.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $171.00. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $155.65 and a twelve month high of $201.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.44 billion, a PE ratio of 38.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.62.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.37 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.57%.

Waste Connections Profile

Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN) is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company’s operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.