4,186 Shares in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN Acquired by Dockside LLC

Dockside LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $698,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. Nicholas Company Inc. grew its stake in Waste Connections by 32.4% during the 4th quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 449,112 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $78,756,000 after buying an additional 109,950 shares during the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC raised its stake in Waste Connections by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 669,442 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $117,394,000 after buying an additional 7,866 shares during the last quarter. Mirabaud Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in Waste Connections by 28.9% in the fourth quarter. Mirabaud Asset Management Ltd now owns 56,620 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,754,000 after buying an additional 12,680 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 60,140 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,546,000 after acquiring an additional 8,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everstar Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth about $2,100,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Waste Connections news, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total value of $234,885.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Robert Michael Cloninger sold 2,811 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.02, for a total value of $480,737.22. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,666 shares in the company, valued at $1,995,119.32. This represents a 19.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 11,811 shares of company stock valued at $1,887,572 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:WCN opened at $166.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $146.89 and a 52-week high of $188.75. The stock has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.05, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $165.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $163.21.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 10.86%.The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.29 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.62 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WCN. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $208.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, July 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $211.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $200.89.

About Waste Connections

Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN) is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company’s operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.