Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) PT Lowered to $195.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its price target reduced by Royal Bank of Canada from $196.00 to $195.00 in a research note published on Friday, BayStreet.CA reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. CIBC boosted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $146.50 to $179.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $179.33.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE WCN opened at $163.48 on Friday. Waste Connections has a 52-week low of $126.12 and a 52-week high of $173.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $42.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a fifty day moving average of $168.22 and a 200-day moving average of $152.30.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Waste Connections news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 116.2% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Pacifica Partners Inc. bought a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.