Janus Henderson Group PLC Increases Stock Position in Waste Connections, Inc. $WCN

Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,541 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,437 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned 0.08% of Waste Connections worth $34,191,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Waste Connections during the 1st quarter valued at about $577,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 12.8% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 219,290 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,946,000 after buying an additional 24,948 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 2.9% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 24,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,572,000 after buying an additional 688 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,714,000. Finally, State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 1.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,808,631 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $337,708,000 after buying an additional 17,197 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WCN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $208.00 price objective (up from $206.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $218.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, April 24th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $199.00 price target on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on Waste Connections from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.42.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of WCN opened at $167.54 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $146.89 and a one year high of $191.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.37, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.49. The business has a fifty day moving average of $162.57 and a 200 day moving average of $163.23.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.15. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.63 EPS for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 6th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 6th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is 33.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ronald J. Mittelstaedt purchased 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $152.24 per share, with a total value of $7,612,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 301,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,826,828.08. This trade represents a 19.92% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Jason Craft sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.59, for a total value of $234,885.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 32,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,145,703.99. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 11,811 shares of company stock valued at $1,887,572 in the last 90 days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.