Diversified Trust Co. Purchases New Shares in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Diversified Trust Co. bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $758,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westview Management dba Westview Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter worth $3,289,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Connections by 912.5% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 324 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC grew its stake in Waste Connections by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 145,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $25,532,000 after acquiring an additional 22,722 shares in the last quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC now owns 15,930 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,794,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Waste Connections by 161.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,114 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,332,000 after buying an additional 11,810 shares in the last quarter. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Down 0.7%

WCN opened at $156.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.62. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $154.90 and a one year high of $201.66. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $1.29 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $2.37 billion. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is presently 33.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WCN. Stifel Nicolaus set a $213.00 price objective on shares of Waste Connections and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, March 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $199.00 target price on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $205.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $176.00 target price on shares of Waste Connections and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $203.52.

Waste Connections 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.