Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY Has $5.29 Million Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 20.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,583 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,633 shares during the period. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $5,293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,911,000. Trium Capital LLP bought a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at $1,995,000. Procyon Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth $1,908,000. Gradient Investments LLC boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 145,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,532,000 after purchasing an additional 22,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 161.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,114 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,332,000 after purchasing an additional 11,810 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In other Waste Connections news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt bought 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. The trade was a 19.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP James Little sold 2,605 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.98, for a total transaction of $427,167.90. Following the sale, the vice president owned 34,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,640,092.10. The trade was a 7.04% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 17,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,822,923. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Connections Trading Up 4.0%

WCN stock opened at $159.58 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $40.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.92, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.51. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $146.89 and a twelve month high of $191.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business has a fifty day moving average of $156.44 and a 200-day moving average of $164.11.

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

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price objective (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $211.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.84.

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.