Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Trims Stock Holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its holdings in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,437,786 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 148,144 shares during the period. Waste Connections accounts for 1.0% of Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $933,010,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WCN. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of Waste Connections by 153.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 152 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Waste Connections by 59.7% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Waste Connections in the third quarter valued at $40,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WCN shares. 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. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. CIBC lowered their target price on Waste Connections from $215.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $214.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Waste Connections from $192.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $202.43.

Waste Connections Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE WCN opened at $193.88 on Friday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 12 month low of $160.34 and a 12 month high of $194.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $186.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $182.86. The stock has a market cap of $50.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.92%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 27th were given a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.72%.

Waste Connections Company 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.