Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Sells 1,098 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP cut its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 0.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 354,606 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,098 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $63,411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WCN. Global Trust Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Waste Connections in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Connections in the third quarter worth approximately $41,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 1st quarter worth approximately $43,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Connections during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in Waste Connections during the 3rd quarter valued at $47,000. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Connections Stock Performance

Shares of Waste Connections stock opened at $189.87 on Monday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a one year low of $132.15 and a one year high of $190.77. The company has a market capitalization of $49.00 billion, a PE ratio of 52.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.74.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.05. Waste Connections had a net margin of 10.81% and a return on equity of 15.43%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. Waste Connections’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 7th were paid a dividend of $0.315 per share. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. This is an increase from Waste Connections’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 7th. Waste Connections’s payout ratio is 34.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight Capital upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $199.00 to $201.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $198.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 4th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $195.56.

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.