AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Sells 2,871 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd decreased its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 12.4% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 20,201 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,871 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $3,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WCN. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $5,214,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth about $61,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 40.8% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 172,403 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $25,773,000 after acquiring an additional 49,961 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $216,000. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 46.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 4,168 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 1,329 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 5,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $899,249. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total value 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Susan Netherton sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.13, for a total transaction of $358,260.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 10,078 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,272.14. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 22,600 shares of company stock worth $4,011,550. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE WCN traded up $0.17 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $186.18. 117,846 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 885,944. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.39, a PEG 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 $187.50. The business has a 50 day moving average of $178.84 and a 200-day moving average of $170.99.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly 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. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 15.16%. The company had revenue of $2.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.02 EPS. Waste Connections’s revenue was up 11.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. CIBC increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock an “outperformer” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $189.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 18th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.28.

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.