Morey & Quinn Wealth Partners LLC Makes New $1.17 Million Investment in Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Morey & Quinn Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 6,790 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,165,000. Waste Connections accounts for about 1.0% of Morey & Quinn Wealth Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Waste Connections by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,293,002 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,025,836,000 after buying an additional 174,121 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Waste Connections by 0.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,313,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $950,055,000 after purchasing an additional 30,890 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Waste Connections by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,698,507 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $634,200,000 after purchasing an additional 65,795 shares during the period. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Waste Connections by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 3,332,826 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $571,846,000 after purchasing an additional 29,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Waste Connections by 35.3% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,678,562 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $478,777,000 after purchasing an additional 699,012 shares during the period. 86.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Waste Connections Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE WCN opened at $193.07 on Wednesday. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $160.34 and a 52 week high of $194.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $186.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $182.72.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Waste Connections Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were issued a $0.315 dividend. This represents a $1.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 27th. Waste Connections’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WCN has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Waste Connections from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target (up previously from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a report on Friday, February 14th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Waste Connections from $196.00 to $192.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Waste Connections from $195.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Waste Connections from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $202.43.

About Waste Connections

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.