Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Has $15.13 Million Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 86,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 3,287 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $15,134,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,911,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 19.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 163,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,780,000 after purchasing an additional 26,684 shares during the last quarter. Trium Capital LLP acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,995,000. Procyon Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,908,000. Finally, Gradient Investments LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 145,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,532,000 after purchasing an additional 22,722 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In other news, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total transaction of $234,885.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,145,703.99. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt bought 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $152.24 per share, for a total transaction of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. This trade represents a 19.92% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,822,923. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WCN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $213.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.84.

Waste Connections Stock Up 2.6%

Waste Connections stock opened at $157.63 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $39.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $192.72. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $158.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.46.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.15%.

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.