Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) CEO Ronald Mittelstaedt Buys 50,000 Shares

Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) CEO Ronald Mittelstaedt acquired 50,000 shares of Waste Connections stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. This represents a 19.92% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.6%

WCN stock traded down $0.95 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $150.30. 511,139 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,626,867. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52-week low of $148.84 and a 52-week high of $198.00. The company has a market cap of $38.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $162.59 and its 200-day moving average is $167.68.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.97% and a return on equity of 16.49%. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ABN Amro Investment Solutions boosted its position in Waste Connections by 49.6% during the first quarter. ABN Amro Investment Solutions now owns 16,340 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,654,000 after purchasing an additional 5,415 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 0.6% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 85,668 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $13,916,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the period. Puzo Michael J bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,385,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 19.7% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 745,441 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $121,086,000 after acquiring an additional 122,829 shares during the period. Finally, Broderick Brian C bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the first quarter valued at approximately $972,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $212.00 price objective on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, February 13th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $183.00 price objective (down from $196.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Waste Connections from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 price objective on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $203.35.

Waste Connections Company Profile

Waste Connections (NYSE: WCN) is a North American integrated waste services company that provides a range of solid waste and environmental services to municipal, commercial, industrial and residential customers. The company offers collection, transportation, transfer, disposal and recycling services, and operates an extensive network of transfer stations and disposal facilities. Waste Connections positions itself as a provider of infrastructure-driven waste solutions across many regions of the United States and Canada.

The company’s operating activities include routine curbside and commercial collection, roll-off and container services, operation of landfills and transfer stations, and recycling and resource recovery programs.