Simplicity Solutions LLC Grows Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Simplicity Solutions LLC raised its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 114.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,205 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,907 shares during the period. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $1,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Savant Capital LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 4.9% in the third quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,673 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,086 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $416,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Connections by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,537 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $744,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 11,699 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,672,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traynor Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Waste Connections by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $283,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WCN shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $166.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. StockNews.com raised Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Atb Cap Markets cut Waste Connections from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $177.69.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In other news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:WCN opened at $165.79 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $167.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $150.41. The company has a market capitalization of $42.78 billion, a PE ratio of 56.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.66. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $126.12 and a 1-year high of $173.02.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.03. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.51% and a return on equity of 14.42%. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 28th were issued a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.51%.

Waste Connections Company Profile

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.