The WACC of Waste Connections Inc (WCN.TO) is 7.2%.
| Range | Selected | |
| Cost of equity | 6.40% - 9.10% | 7.75% |
| Tax rate | 19.70% - 20.00% | 19.85% |
| Cost of debt | 4.00% - 4.50% | 4.25% |
| WACC | 6.0% - 8.4% | 7.2% |
| Category | Low | High |
| Long-term bond rate | 3.2% | 3.7% |
| Equity market risk premium | 5.1% | 6.1% |
| Adjusted beta | 0.64 | 0.81 |
| Additional risk adjustments | 0.0% | 0.5% |
| Cost of equity | 6.40% | 9.10% |
| Tax rate | 19.70% | 20.00% |
| Debt/Equity ratio | 0.16 | 0.16 |
| Cost of debt | 4.00% | 4.50% |
| After-tax WACC | 6.0% | 8.4% |
| Selected WACC | 7.2% | |
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 (7.75%) = risk_free_rate (3.45%) + equity_risk_premium (5.60%) * adjusted_beta (0.64) + 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.