GAMMA Investing LLC Has $803,000 Stock Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 785.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,682 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,153 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WCN. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Waste Connections by 58.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 226 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCN traded up $1.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $170.93. The stock had a trading volume of 912,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,058,592. The company's 50-day moving average price is $181.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $180.76. Waste Connections, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $145.35 and a fifty-two week high of $194.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $44.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.76.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The company's revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This is an increase from Waste Connections's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Waste Connections from $206.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.69.

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.