Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Acquired by Alberta Investment Management Corp

Alberta Investment Management Corp boosted its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 400,668 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $68,700,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 58.0% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 226 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WCN has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. CIBC cut their price target on Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Scotiabank cut their price target on 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. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.00.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WCN opened at $187.63 on Wednesday. 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 1 year low of $160.34 and a 1 year high of $194.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.51, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.83.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th will be issued a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.72%.

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.