Everence Capital Management Inc. Acquires Shares of 2,270 Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,270 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $389,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WCN. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth $40,000. Asset Dedication LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth $41,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Waste Connections by 58.0% in the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 226 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on WCN. Citigroup raised their target price on Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $206.00 to $214.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Eight Capital raised shares of Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.69.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $171.78 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.33 billion, a PE ratio of 47.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $145.35 and a 12 month high of $194.83. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $181.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $180.80.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.17 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast 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 $0.315 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This is an increase from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 34.62%.

About Waste Connections

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.