Intact Investment Management Inc. Has $12.03 Million Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Intact Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 50.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 67,297 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 69,310 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $12,030,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WCN. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 1,167.4% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 473,422 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $83,020,000 after acquiring an additional 436,067 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 438.5% in the 1st quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 535,471 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $92,106,000 after buying an additional 436,041 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $64,176,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Waste Connections by 252.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 510,243 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $89,477,000 after buying an additional 365,487 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 4,567.2% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 253,567 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $44,466,000 after buying an additional 248,134 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN stock traded up $0.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $177.64. 548,544 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 879,616. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $45.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $129.31 and a one year high of $187.54. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.64.

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

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 21st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th will be issued a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. This is a boost from Waste Connections's previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is currently 31.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.15, for a total transaction of $180,150.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,321 shares of the company's stock, valued at $778,428.15. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Scotiabank began coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $205.00 price objective (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $195.56.

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.