Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) Shares Purchased by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 564,335 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,500 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $100,983,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WCN. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 307.1% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,927,155 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $344,615,000 after acquiring an additional 1,453,733 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 44.2% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,964,082 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $351,037,000 after acquiring an additional 602,055 shares during the last quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter worth $64,176,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 252.5% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 510,243 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $89,477,000 after acquiring an additional 365,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth $54,800,000. 86.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of WCN opened at $193.25 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $181.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $178.11. The stock has a market cap of $49.87 billion, a PE ratio of 53.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.72. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $132.15 and a 12 month high of $194.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. This is a boost from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is currently 34.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WCN. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Scotiabank initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They issued a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 price objective for the company. Eight Capital raised Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $195.56.

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.