Argent Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Argent Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 1.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 375,459 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,796 shares during the quarter. Waste Connections accounts for about 1.9% of Argent Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Waste Connections worth $65,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,214,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,603 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $687,000 after buying an additional 647 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 230,203 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,362,000 after buying an additional 15,857 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,439 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $812,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $189.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total value of $169,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 5,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $899,249. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total transaction of $169,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,321 shares in the company, valued at $899,249. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Mary Anne Whitney sold 16,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $2,902,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,706,466.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,600 shares of company stock valued at $4,011,550 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCN traded up $1.95 during trading on Friday, reaching $186.43. 407,828 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 894,801. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $126.12 and a 12 month high of $186.44. The company has a 50 day moving average of $178.56 and a 200-day moving average of $170.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.23%. Waste Connections’s quarterly revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.02 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 7th were given a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.01%.

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.