Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $208.00 to $205.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 target price (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Eight Capital upgraded Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.56.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $49.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.72. 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 fifty day moving average of $182.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.32.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.17 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect 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 issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. This is a boost from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is 34.62%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Versor Investments LP boosted its stake in Waste Connections by 75.1% in the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,470,000 after purchasing an additional 3,527 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Waste Connections by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $543,000 after buying an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,503,000. Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 11.0% in the second quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 65,052 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,408,000 after acquiring an additional 6,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 6.5% during the third quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 2,332,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $417,385,000 after purchasing an additional 142,751 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.