Hsbc Holdings PLC Buys 18,364 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 266,105 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 18,364 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.10% of Waste Connections worth $45,623,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,293,002 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,025,836,000 after buying an additional 174,121 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 8,644,222 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,481,041,000 after purchasing an additional 356,798 shares during the period. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 46.2% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 7,177,724 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,231,368,000 after purchasing an additional 2,269,652 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Waste Connections by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,949,152 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,020,672,000 after purchasing an additional 899,058 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth about $687,935,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Waste Connections stock traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $194.00. 1,425,979 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 975,180. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.34 and a 12 month high of $201.66. The firm has a market cap of $50.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.17, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $190.88 and a 200 day moving average of $185.00.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.04 EPS. Waste Connections's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 7th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WCN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $218.00 to $209.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday. William Blair assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $206.57.

Waste Connections 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.