Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 58.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,183 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 8,639 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $1,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in Waste Connections by 153.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in 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 during the period. Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 890.0% in the first quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oarsman Capital Inc. lifted its position in Waste Connections by 41.4% in the fourth quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 222 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Price Performance

WCN stock opened at $187.70 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $193.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.36 and a 1 year high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.06. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.93% and a return on equity of 15.74%. The firm had revenue of $2.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 7th were issued a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 7th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WCN. Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $213.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. William Blair started coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Waste Connections to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Scotiabank raised their price target on Waste Connections from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $220.00 price objective on Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.29.

About Waste Connections

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.