Puzo Michael J Invests $1.39 Million in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Puzo Michael J acquired a new position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,525 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,385,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WCN. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 745,441 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $121,086,000 after buying an additional 122,829 shares during the period. Broderick Brian C bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 1st quarter valued at about $972,000. SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at about $8,701,000. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 6.5% in the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 751,345 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $122,048,000 after buying an additional 45,700 shares during the period. Finally, Angeles Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the first quarter worth about $306,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Patrick James Shea sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.26, for a total value of $1,171,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 19,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,084,103.62. The trade was a 27.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $152.24 per share, for a total transaction of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 301,017 shares in the company, valued at $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. Insiders sold a total of 17,605 shares of company stock worth $2,822,923 over the last 90 days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE:WCN opened at $170.93 on Tuesday. 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 $191.91. The company has a fifty day moving average of $160.19 and a 200-day moving average of $163.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.69, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.49.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. Waste Connections’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 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.49 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $211.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $180.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Three investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $202.00.

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.