Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 8.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,848 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5,784 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $10,132,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 705 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 14,247 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,445,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 59.7% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 58.0% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 226 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,943 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $676,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCN opened at $193.07 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $186.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $160.34 and a one year high of $194.83. The stock has a market cap of $49.83 billion, a PE ratio of 80.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. On average, analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. StockNews.com lowered Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Waste Connections from $205.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.43.

Waste Connections 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.