The WACC of Waste Connections Inc (WCN.TO) is 6.6%.
| Range | Selected | |
| Cost of equity | 5.90% - 8.60% | 7.25% |
| Tax rate | 20.10% - 21.20% | 20.65% |
| Cost of debt | 4.00% - 4.50% | 4.25% |
| WACC | 5.4% - 7.7% | 6.6% |
| Category | Low | High |
| Long-term bond rate | 3.2% | 3.7% |
| Equity market risk premium | 5.1% | 6.1% |
| Adjusted beta | 0.53 | 0.72 |
| Additional risk adjustments | 0.0% | 0.5% |
| Cost of equity | 5.90% | 8.60% |
| Tax rate | 20.10% | 21.20% |
| Debt/Equity ratio | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Cost of debt | 4.00% | 4.50% |
| After-tax WACC | 5.4% | 7.7% |
| Selected WACC | 6.6% | |
The Cost of Equity reflects the return a company needs to deliver to shareholders to justify the risk of investing in its shares. It’s computed using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which blends the risk-free rate, the stock’s beta, and the market risk premium.
This method evaluates the stock’s risk compared to a safe investment and the market’s overall volatility.
Here’s how we figure out the cost of equity for WCN.TO:
cost_of_equity (7.25%) = risk_free_rate (3.45%) + equity_risk_premium (5.60%) * adjusted_beta (0.53) + risk_adjustments (0.25%)
We include the risk adjustments, which range from 0% to 1%, to keep our WACC conservatives, especially for companies traded in developing markets.