Sit Investment Associates Inc. Increases Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Sit Investment Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 9.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 68,766 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,173 shares during the period. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $12,059,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. City Holding Co. bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in Waste Connections in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Waste Connections by 346.2% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 174 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $152.24 per share, for a total transaction of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 301,017 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. The trade was a 19.92% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP James Little sold 2,605 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.98, for a total value of $427,167.90. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 34,395 shares in the company, valued at $5,640,092.10. The trade was a 7.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 17,605 shares of company stock valued at $2,822,923 in the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WCN. Barclays set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Waste Connections from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 target price (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $218.00 price target (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Waste Connections in a report on Friday, March 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.84.

Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN stock opened at $154.03 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.89 and a 52 week high of $191.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.51.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $2.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.13 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 6th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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 (DPR) is presently 34.15%.

Waste Connections 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.