Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 81,472 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA reduced its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 14.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 472,833 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 81,472 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.18% of Waste Connections worth $81,129,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth approximately $687,935,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 307.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,927,155 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $344,615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,733 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth $240,422,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 35.3% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,678,562 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $478,777,000 after purchasing an additional 699,012 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Waste Connections by 239.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 647,727 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $115,558,000 after purchasing an additional 457,137 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on WCN shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. CIBC reduced their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, William Blair started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.43.

Waste Connections Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:WCN traded down $2.84 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $190.06. 552,012 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 955,518. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $49.10 billion, a PE ratio of 79.36, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.67. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $189.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $183.54. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $160.34 and a one year high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. Equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.72%.

About Waste Connections

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.