Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $55.72 Million Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC decreased its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 10.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 323,937 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 37,885 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $55,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 116.2% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Sands Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Sands Capital Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Waste Connections

In related news, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.00, for a total value of $332,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,049,286. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Michael W. Harlan sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.59, for a total value of $251,385.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,341,390.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robert Nielsen III sold 2,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.00, for a total transaction of $332,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,049,286. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $752,385. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on WCN. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Waste Connections from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $189.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $195.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.94.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $175.09 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $162.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a twelve month low of $126.12 and a twelve month high of $177.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 9.70%. Waste Connections’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.285 per share. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.01%.

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.