Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Trading Up 0% on Earnings Beat

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) was up 0% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $166.85 and last traded at $166.18. Approximately 135,824 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 889,502 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.17.

The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.76% and a net margin of 9.70%. Waste Connections’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. StockNews.com raised Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. CIBC increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.87.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total transaction of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at $592,392,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 20.5% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,294,922 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,516,908,000 after acquiring an additional 1,920,302 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,364,071 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $651,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,320,933 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 57.7% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 3,500,718 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $522,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281,418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 235.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,153,882 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $172,240,000 after acquiring an additional 809,914 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $168.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $151.92.

About Waste Connections

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.