DF Dent & Co. Inc. Lowers Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

DF Dent & Co. Inc. lessened its position in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,288,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 22,026 shares during the period. Waste Connections comprises approximately 2.8% of DF Dent & Co. Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. DF Dent & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $221,057,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WCN. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Waste Connections by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 106,737 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $18,314,000 after purchasing an additional 6,248 shares during the last quarter. Bryce Point Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the fourth quarter worth approximately $558,000. Groupama Asset Managment raised its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 51.9% in the fourth quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 30,936 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,295,000 after acquiring an additional 10,566 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 94.2% in the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 31,289 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,369,000 after acquiring an additional 15,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Waste Connections by 239.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 647,727 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $115,558,000 after acquiring an additional 457,137 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.09% of the company’s stock.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Shares of WCN opened at $196.75 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $50.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 1 year low of $160.34 and a 1 year high of $197.74. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $188.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $183.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is presently 52.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on WCN. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. CIBC lowered their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $199.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $204.00.

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.