Argent Capital Management LLC Has $62.24 Million Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Argent Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 362,741 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 7,140 shares during the period. Waste Connections comprises 1.8% of Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $62,239,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versor Investments LP raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 75.1% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at $552,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter worth $2,503,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 303,040 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $54,190,000 after purchasing an additional 77,466 shares during the period. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,202 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Stock Up 0.9 %

Waste Connections stock opened at $176.85 on Thursday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1-year low of $145.35 and a 1-year high of $194.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $45.64 billion, a PE ratio of 48.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.76. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $181.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.80.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 10.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 7th. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WCN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James cut their price objective on Waste Connections from $208.00 to $205.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $205.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. 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, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.75.

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.