Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Has $9.27 Million Position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lessened its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 54,167 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,816 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $9,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 59.7% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN opened at $185.49 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $47.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.61, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $184.10 and a 200 day moving average of $182.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. Waste Connections, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $160.34 and a fifty-two week high of $194.83.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. On average, research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 52.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on WCN. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.43.

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.