Xponance Inc. Buys 1,772 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Xponance Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN - Free Report) by 14.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,980 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,772 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.'s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and issued a $210.00 target price (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price target on 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $202.43.

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Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN traded up $2.14 on Tuesday, reaching $193.07. The company had a trading volume of 891,754 shares, compared to its average volume of 883,565. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $160.34 and a 52-week high of $194.83. The company has a market cap of $49.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $186.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $182.72.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Waste Connections's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.72%.

About Waste Connections

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.