Diversified Trust Co. Buys Shares of 4,321 Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Diversified Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 4,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $758,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter valued at $28,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 555.2% in the third quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Trust Co acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter valued at $49,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of WCN stock opened at $156.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.42, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $154.90 and a one year high of $201.66. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.50.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.The firm had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. 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 33.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price target on Waste Connections and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $205.00 price objective on Waste Connections and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $210.00 price target (down from $219.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $183.00 target price (down from $196.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $203.52.

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.