Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Position Lessened by Korea Investment CORP

Korea Investment CORP lessened its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 18.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 166,196 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 38,671 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.06% of Waste Connections worth $28,516,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 1,453,733 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $240,422,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp boosted its holdings in shares of 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 last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 35.3% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,678,562 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $478,777,000 after purchasing an additional 699,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in Waste Connections by 199.4% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 591,250 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $105,727,000 after purchasing an additional 393,763 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Waste Connections Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WCN traded down $1.36 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $195.15. 474,420 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 974,040. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12-month low of $160.34 and a 12-month high of $197.74. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $187.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $183.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $50.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio is presently 52.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus upped 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. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their target price on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $202.43.

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.