Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Given New $210.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its price target trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $220.00 to $210.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

WCN has been the topic of several other research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $220.00 price objective (up previously from $215.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $202.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Monday, January 5th. CIBC set a $208.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group set a $205.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday, January 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $207.74.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.1%

WCN stock opened at $164.79 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $172.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.98. The company has a market capitalization of $42.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.66, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.63. Waste Connections has a twelve month low of $162.06 and a twelve month high of $201.66.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 21st. The business services provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.65% and a return on equity of 16.07%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 5th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.32. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 5th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.33%.

Insider Activity at Waste Connections

In related news, Director Edward E. Guillet sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $174.44, for a total value of $1,569,960.00. Following the sale, the director owned 14,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,596,190.52. This trade represents a 37.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 2.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 31,585,284 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,552,682,000 after buying an additional 717,440 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC increased its position in Waste Connections by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 6,501,719 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,208,669,000 after acquiring an additional 117,939 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Waste Connections by 17.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 6,136,218 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,078,536,000 after acquiring an additional 918,245 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Waste Connections by 39.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,455,162 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $783,218,000 after acquiring an additional 1,264,150 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the second quarter worth $755,938,000. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

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.