Wells Fargo & Company MN Trims Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Wells Fargo & Company MN decreased its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 15.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 299,869 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 53,436 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $51,417,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 59.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 5.4 %

Shares of WCN stock opened at $193.11 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $189.24 and a 200 day moving average of $183.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $49.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.67. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $160.34 and a twelve month high of $201.66.

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

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. William Blair assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Waste Connections from $205.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $204.43.

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.