Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Price Target Cut to $195.00

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its price objective decreased by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $196.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target points to a potential upside of 19.28% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on WCN. StockNews.com raised Waste Connections from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Waste Connections from $153.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. CIBC upped their price target on Waste Connections from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Waste Connections from $146.50 to $179.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $166.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.33.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

WCN opened at $163.48 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Waste Connections has a 1-year low of $126.12 and a 1-year high of $173.02. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $168.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $152.20.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 9.70%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.89 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Andrea E. Bertone sold 902 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.17, for a total transaction of $152,591.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Waste Connections

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 116.2% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $36,000. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Waste Connections during the third quarter worth $41,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.