Values First Advisors Inc. Sells 5,154 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Values First Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 57.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,786 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 5,154 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $649,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WCN. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 307.1% in the 3rd 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. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its position in Waste Connections by 432.6% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 1,022,851 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Waste Connections by 35.3% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 699,012 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Waste Connections by 44.2% in the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 602,055 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in Waste Connections by 199.4% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 591,250 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $105,727,000 after acquiring an additional 393,763 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Price Performance

NYSE:WCN traded up $0.23 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $189.08. 1,261,705 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 873,997. The business's 50-day moving average price is $179.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $181.67. The company has a market cap of $48.80 billion, a PE ratio of 51.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.77. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.34 and a 12-month 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.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. On average, analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th will be paid a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections's payout ratio is 34.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on WCN. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. CIBC decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $205.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $201.00.

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.