Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Stock Position Boosted by Eventide Asset Management LLC

Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 0.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 807,637 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the period. Waste Connections accounts for about 2.5% of Eventide Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Eventide Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $144,422,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 2.3% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 8,103,895 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,423,373,000 after purchasing an additional 178,870 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,313,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $950,055,000 after acquiring an additional 30,890 shares in the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in Waste Connections by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 2,332,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $417,385,000 after acquiring an additional 142,751 shares in the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 15.5% in the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 2,303,339 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $401,936,000 after acquiring an additional 309,619 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 602,055 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WCN. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight Capital upgraded Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.56.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.0 %

NYSE:WCN opened at $193.18 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.85 billion, a PE ratio of 53.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $132.15 and a 52 week high of $194.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $182.04 and a 200-day moving average of $178.32.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 10.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.17 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid a $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 7th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.62%.

Waste Connections Company 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.