Waste Connections’ (WCN) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Stifel Nicolaus

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Stifel Nicolaus in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $205.00 target price on the business services provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $200.00. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price points to a potential upside of 15.58% from the company’s current price.

WCN has been the subject of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Raymond James raised their price target on Waste Connections from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $195.56.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.7 %

Waste Connections stock traded down $1.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $177.37. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 194,617 shares, compared to its average volume of 879,190. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.77 billion, a PE ratio of 57.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Connections has a 1 year low of $126.12 and a 1 year high of $187.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $182.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.05.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.16% and a net margin of 10.23%. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.17 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Waste Connections will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.15, for a total value of $180,150.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,321 shares in the company, valued at $778,428.15. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, SVP Philip Rivard sold 2,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.75, for a total value of $401,925.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,226 shares in the company, valued at $214,243.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.15, for a total value of $180,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,321 shares in the company, valued at $778,428.15. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,600 shares of company stock worth $3,842,550. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Waste Connections

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,005 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $204,000. OneAscent Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 4,968 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $855,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Finally, Aviance Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $370,000. 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.