Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases 1,709 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 92.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,551 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,709 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $693,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 59.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Trading Down 0.6%

WCN stock opened at $188.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $193.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $187.58. The firm has a market cap of $48.83 billion, a PE ratio of 79.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.20 and a fifty-two week high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 15.54%. The business’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th were given a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 51.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on WCN. Melius began coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 26th. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $213.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.29.

Waste Connections 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.