Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $194.24 and last traded at $194.24, with a volume of 159379 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $193.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.56.

Waste Connections Price Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $181.46 and a 200 day moving average of $178.11. 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 company has a market capitalization of $49.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.72.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid a $0.315 dividend. This is an increase from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.62%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 307.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,927,155 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $344,615,000 after purchasing an additional 1,453,733 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its holdings in Waste Connections by 432.6% during the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 1,259,312 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $225,078,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022,851 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Waste Connections by 35.3% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,678,562 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $478,777,000 after buying an additional 699,012 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $351,037,000 after buying an additional 602,055 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 199.4% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 591,250 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $105,727,000 after buying an additional 393,763 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.