Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Sold by Wealthfront Advisers LLC

Wealthfront Advisers LLC cut its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 34.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,620 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 7,562 shares during the quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC's holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $552,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth about $2,503,000. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 34.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 303,040 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $54,190,000 after acquiring an additional 77,466 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 785.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,682 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $803,000 after acquiring an additional 4,153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TCW Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 6.7% in the third quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 722,426 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $129,184,000 after buying an additional 45,215 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN traded up $3.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $190.76. The stock had a trading volume of 943,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 879,302. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $160.34 and a one year high of $194.83. 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 stock 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. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $184.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.51.

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Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last issued 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.66%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on WCN. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial reiterated 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. CIBC dropped their target price on Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. 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 report on Monday, January 27th. Four 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 company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.