Jennison Associates LLC Purchases 2,108 Shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN)

Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in shares of Waste Connections, Inc. (NYSE:WCN) by 17.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,184 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,108 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Waste Connections were worth $2,536,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on WCN. Eight Capital upgraded shares of Waste Connections to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Waste Connections from $198.00 to $196.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target (up from $200.00) on shares of Waste Connections in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Waste Connections from $191.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Waste Connections from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Waste Connections currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $195.56.

Waste Connections Price Performance

Waste Connections stock opened at $189.87 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $49.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $181.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $177.65. Waste Connections, Inc. has a 52 week low of $132.15 and a 52 week high of $190.77.

Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.05. Waste Connections had a return on equity of 15.43% and a net margin of 10.81%. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Waste Connections, Inc. will post 4.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Connections Increases Dividend

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

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.