Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Price Target Increased to $186.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its price objective boosted by BMO Capital Markets from $182.00 to $186.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group downgraded Waste Connections from a buy rating to a neutral rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $181.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Atb Cap Markets downgraded shares of Waste Connections from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Waste Connections from $136.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. Five 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $179.33.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WCN opened at $164.65 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $168.16 and a 200-day moving average of $152.49. Waste Connections has a 12 month low of $126.12 and a 12 month high of $173.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.48 billion, a PE ratio of 53.46, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. Waste Connections had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.05 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be paid a $0.285 dividend. This represents a $1.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Connections

In other news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total value of $152,591.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 12,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,143,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the period. RWA Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the 1st quarter valued at $214,000. Sycomore Asset Management boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 17.4% during the first quarter. Sycomore Asset Management now owns 44,391 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,636,000 after acquiring an additional 6,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highview Capital Management LLC DE grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 2.8% in the first quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 8,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.