WCN
Waste Connections Inc. Common SharesUtilities · ·
$167.39
▲ $2.89 (+1.8%)
Market Cap
$42.19B
Day Range
$162.28 - $167.43
52-Week Range
$146.89 - $191.00
Beta
—
Next Earnings
19.10.2026
WCN is a stock from the Utilities sector — Electricity, water, and residential gas — steady demand and heavy regulation, considered a defensive, dividend-paying sector.
🏢 Similar Stocks in the Same Sector
-12.4% (1Y)
This score and all analysis on this page are for informational and educational purposes only and do not constitute investment advice. Read the full disclaimer
Weighted: Technical 25% · Fundamental 20% · Growth 15% · Valuation 15% · News 10% · Quality 10% · Risk 5%
🔍 Cross-Check
Overall Score
🟡 Mixed
Technical Trend
🔴 Bearish
Insiders
🔴 Bearish
✅ Why is the score relatively high?
- 🟢 Earnings per share (EPS) growth: 74.5%
- 🟢 Net income growth: 74.3%
- 🟢 Operating margin is stable or improving over time
- 🟢 Price is above the 50-day average
- 🟢 Gross margin: 42.4% — strong
⚠️ What's concerning?
- 🔴 Estimated fair value: $88.36 vs. price $167.39 (-47.2%)
- 🔴 Current ratio: 0.62
- 🔴 Price is below the 200-day average
- 🔴 MACD histogram is negative — falling momentum
- 🔴 -0.4% over the last 3 months relative to the index
🚦 Quality & Risk Checks
📰 News Trend
Based on real financial news (Finnhub)Everyone's writing about Waste Connections Inc. Common Shares. News trend score: 98. Reason: 8 of the last 9 articles are positive, versus 0 negative.
News trend analysis is based on article sentiment only, and is not investment advice or financial counsel. Read the full disclaimer
📈 Technical Analysis
Based on the last 251 trading days, calculated from real price data. Click an indicator for details and a chart.
🔴 Most indicators support a downtrend (1 bullish · 9 bearish · 1 neutral)
Conclusions
- 🟢Price vs. SMA 50 — Price is above the 50-day average
- 🔴Price vs. SMA 200 — Price is below the 200-day average
- 🔴MACD — MACD histogram is negative — falling momentum
- 🔴RSI — RSI 44.4 — weak/negative bias
- 🔴Stochastic — %K 12.8 — oversold
- 🟡ADX (trend strength) — ADX 22.3 — weak trend/choppy
- 🔴Relative strength vs. S&P 500 — -0.4% over the last 3 months relative to the index
- 🔴Bollinger Bands — Price is in the lower third of the Bollinger Bands (-1%B) — weakness (chance of a recovery)
- 🔴ROC (rate of change) — ROC 12 days: -3.7%
- 🔴Parabolic SAR — Price is below the SAR point — downtrend
- 🔴CMF (money flow) — CMF 20 days: -0.20
Wyckoff Method Analysis
A market-structure read based purely on real price and volume data — not full classic Wyckoff schematic identification (Phase A-E), but a quantitative analysis of what can reliably be computed: trading ranges, "effort vs. result", volume within the range, and Spring/Upthrust detection.
The stock is in a clear uptrend with no defined trading range in the period examined.
Medium confidence
Evidence Behind This Read
- 🟢Rising price trend — A 7.0% change over the last 50 days, with no defined trading range.
The Wyckoff Method, developed by Richard Wyckoff in the early 20th century, reads the balance of supply and demand through price and volume, based on the premise that large investors ("smart money") quietly accumulate shares before rallies and quietly distribute them before declines. The read here is based solely on real price and volume data — full, precise identification of classic Wyckoff patterns (such as Phases A-E) requires human chart-reading experience and judgment, so this is an approximate algorithmic read, not a substitute for professional analysis. This should not be considered investment advice.
🎯 Trade Planning (M.A.E.E Framework)
Based on a mechanical trading method: market structure → value zone → ATR-based exit point. Not investment advice — a calculation tool only.
1️⃣ Market Structure
🟡 Range
The price is oscillating around the 200-day average with no clear direction — the method recommends great caution here (buying at the bottom of the range / selling at the top) or avoiding trading altogether.
2️⃣ Value Zone
🟢 Price in value zone
The price is close to the 50-day moving average — per the method, this is a reasonable area to look for an entry, rather than chasing the price far from it.
💰 Financial Health
Profitability
Gross Margin
42.4%
Operating Margin
18.1%
Net Margin
11.4%
EBITDA Margin
31.1%
Efficiency
ROE
13.1%
ROA
5.1%
ROIC
—
EPS
$4.18
Balance Sheet
Cash
$45.97M
Total Debt
—
Current Ratio
0.62
Debt/Equity
—
Conclusions
- 🟢Gross margin — Gross margin: 42.4% — strong
- 🟡Operating margin — Operating margin: 18.1% — reasonable
- 🟡Net margin — Net margin: 11.4% — reasonable
- 🟡Return on equity (ROE) — Return on equity (ROE): 13.1% — reasonable
- 🟡Return on assets (ROA) — Return on assets (ROA): 5.1% — reasonable
- 🔴Current ratio (liquidity) — Current ratio: 0.62
🚀 Growth
Revenue
Earnings per Share (EPS)
Net Income
Free Cash Flow (FCF)
Conclusions
- 🟡Revenue growth (last year) — Revenue growth (last year): 6.1%
- 🟢Earnings per share (EPS) growth — Earnings per share (EPS) growth: 74.5%
- 🟡Free cash flow growth — Free cash flow growth: 5.3%
- 🟢Net income growth — Net income growth: 74.3%
💵 Dividends
Total dividend per share paid each year, over the last 5 years.
Annual Dividend per Share
| Ex-Dividend Date | Amount per Share |
|---|---|
| 6.5.2026 | $0.350 |
| 25.2.2026 | $0.350 |
| 6.8.2025 | $0.315 |
| 7.5.2025 | $0.315 |
| 27.2.2025 | $0.315 |
| 7.11.2024 | $0.315 |
| 7.8.2024 | $0.285 |
| 7.5.2024 | $0.285 |
| 27.2.2024 | $0.285 |
| 7.11.2023 | $0.285 |
| 15.8.2023 | $0.255 |
| 9.5.2023 | $0.255 |
💎 Fair Value (Valuation)
Current Price
$167.39
Estimated Fair Value (DCF)
$88.36
Gap
-47.2%
🔴 Appears expensive relative to estimated value
Show all model (DCF) assumptions →
Year 1 Growth Rate
9.5%
Discount Rate (WACC)
9.0%
Terminal Growth Rate
2.5%
Projection Years
5
| Year | Growth Rate | Projected FCF | Present Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.5% | $1.35B | $1.24B |
| 2 | 7.8% | $1.46B | $1.23B |
| 3 | 6.0% | $1.54B | $1.19B |
| 4 | 4.3% | $1.61B | $1.14B |
| 5 | 2.5% | $1.65B | $1.07B |
Base FCF (last actual year)
$1.23B
Terminal Value
$26.03B
Present Value of Terminal Value
$16.92B
Enterprise Value
$22.80B
Net Debt
$0
Equity Value
$22.80B
*The DCF model is an estimate based on assumptions — not a guaranteed forecast. You can change the assumptions to examine different scenarios.
Book Value per Share
$31.96
Tangible Book Value per Share (Tangible NAV)
-$8.35
Conclusions
- 🔴DCF Fair Value — Estimated fair value: $88.36 vs. price $167.39 (-47.2%)
- 🟡Tangible Net Asset Value (NAV) — NAV per share: -$8.35
- 🔴P/E — P/E: 39.4
🕴️ Insider Trading
Real transactions by officers and insiders, as reported to the SEC on Form 4 — 1 purchases and 11 sales out of the last 25 filings.
| Name | Transaction Type | Date | Shares | Change | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NIELSEN III ROBERT | Open Market Sale | 29.7.2026 | 3,950 | -300 | $173.10 |
| Cloninger Robert Michael | Open Market Sale | 28.7.2026 | 11,904 | -2,573 | $171.00 |
| Cloninger Robert Michael | Open Market Sale | 28.7.2026 | 11,666 | -238 | $171.33 |
| PIO DOMENIC | Other Transaction | 30.6.2026 | 9,188 | +95 | $158.36 |
| Black Matthew Stephen | Other Transaction | 30.6.2026 | 43,530 | +16 | $158.36 |
| CRAFT JASON | Other Transaction | 30.6.2026 | 32,915 | +54 | $158.36 |
| BRADLEY AARON | Other Transaction | 30.6.2026 | 8,624 | +42 | $158.36 |
| Shea Patrick James | Gift | 9.6.2026 | 19,622 | -100 | — |
| Shea Patrick James | Gift | 8.6.2026 | 19,722 | -15 | — |
| Shea Patrick James | Open Market Sale | 5.6.2026 | 19,737 | -7,500 | $156.26 |
| CRAFT JASON | Open Market Sale | 5.6.2026 | 32,861 | -1,500 | $156.59 |
| NIELSEN III ROBERT | Open Market Sale | 14.5.2026 | 4,250 | -500 | $155.56 |
| NIELSEN III ROBERT | Open Market Sale | 13.5.2026 | 4,750 | -290 | $151.00 |
| MITTELSTAEDT RONALD J | Open Market Purchase | 12.5.2026 | 301,017 | +50,000 | $152.24 |
| NIELSEN III ROBERT | Open Market Sale | 12.5.2026 | 5,040 | -337 | $153.00 |
| HANSEN ERIC | Open Market Sale | 30.4.2026 | 13,350 | -6,000 | $164.82 |
| LITTLE JAMES | Open Market Sale | 27.4.2026 | 34,395 | -2,605 | $163.98 |
| FLORNESS DANIEL L | Exercise of Derivative Securities | 1.4.2026 | 332 | +332 | — |
| FLORNESS DANIEL L | Tax Withholding in Shares | 1.4.2026 | 154 | -178 | $162.98 |
| FLORNESS DANIEL L | Grant/Award from Employer | 1.4.2026 | 419 | +419 | — |
| FLORNESS DANIEL L | Grant/Award from Employer | 1.4.2026 | 663 | +663 | — |
| FLORNESS DANIEL L | Exercise of Derivative Securities | 1.4.2026 | 331 | -332 | — |
| TAN DEREK | Open Market Sale | 4.3.2026 | 1,404 | -1,173 | $171.03 |
| MITTELSTAEDT RONALD J | Exercise of Derivative Securities | 18.2.2026 | 251,363 | +878 | — |
| MITTELSTAEDT RONALD J | Tax Withholding in Shares | 18.2.2026 | 251,017 | -346 | $162.76 |
📉 Short Interest
Official FINRA data — the number of shares open in short positions, plus daily short-sale activity.
Monthly Trend — Open Short Interest
3,084,063 shares short as of 2026-07-15 · vs. 2,969,730 on 2026-06-30
Official biweekly report (FINRA Rule 4560) — no real higher-frequency data exists for this metric.
Weekly Trend — Daily Short-Sale Activity
57.3% of trading volume this week was short selling, vs. 53.9% the prior week
Based on daily short-sale volume (Reg SHO) — a different metric from the open short interest above: this is daily trading volume, not an open position, so it updates weekly rather than biweekly.
📰 News & Sentiment
Sentiment based on basic keywords (not AI) — 8 positive, 1 neutral, 0 negative out of the last 9 articles.
Benzinga · 4.8.2026
SeekingAlpha · 31.7.2026
SeekingAlpha · 29.7.2026
SeekingAlpha · 28.7.2026
Benzinga · 28.7.2026
SeekingAlpha · 26.7.2026
Benzinga · 24.7.2026
SeekingAlpha · 24.7.2026
SeekingAlpha · 23.7.2026