Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp cut its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 5.2% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 304,129 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 16,528 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $49,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 1,166.7% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 346.2% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $234,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,145,703.99. The trade was a 4.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt acquired 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,017 shares in the company, valued at $45,826,828.08. The trade was a 19.92% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,605 shares of company stock worth $2,822,923. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

NYSE WCN opened at $169.52 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $161.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.49. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.89 and a 52-week high of $191.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The business had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.29 EPS. Waste Connections’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Citigroup raised their target price on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.05.

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.