JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) Price Target to $195.00

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) had its target price increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $187.00 to $195.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the business services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 20.70% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also commented on WCN. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price target (down from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Scotiabank set a $197.00 price target on Waste Connections and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 price target for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $202.81.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

NYSE:WCN opened at $161.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $41.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.67. Waste Connections has a twelve month low of $154.90 and a twelve month high of $199.78.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.37 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Waste Connections will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Waste Connections

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at about $534,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 43.8% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,580 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,154,000 after acquiring an additional 2,003 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 2,048 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $359,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Pure Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $302,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Waste Connections

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.