KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Cuts Stake in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lessened its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 95,924 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $18,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WCN. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Waste Connections in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Oarsman Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 222 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Waste Connections by 994.4% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 197 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 890.0% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 198 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 232.3% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 216 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WCN. Melius Research raised shares of Waste Connections to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $213.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $224.00 to $211.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. CIBC dropped their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperformer” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. National Bank Financial raised shares of Waste Connections to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 26th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $206.00 to $202.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Waste Connections presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.00.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $184.41 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.70. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.36 and a 12 month high of $201.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $188.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $188.35. The company has a market cap of $47.65 billion, a PE ratio of 75.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.60.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.04. Waste Connections had a net margin of 6.93% and a return on equity of 15.74%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.24 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.85%.

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.