Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ cut its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 54,167 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 1,816 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $9,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 307.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,927,155 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $344,615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,733 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $240,422,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 432.6% in the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,259,312 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $225,078,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022,851 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of 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, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 44.2% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,964,082 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $351,037,000 after purchasing an additional 602,055 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on WCN. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target 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. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.43.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock traded up $3.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $190.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 961,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,000,434. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $184.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.51. The firm has a market cap of $49.23 billion, a PE ratio of 79.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. Waste Connections, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.34 and a fifty-two week high of $194.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 EPS 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

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

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.