Wasatch Advisors LP Sells 1,183,222 Shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. $CWST

Wasatch Advisors LP decreased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) by 31.4% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,582,220 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,183,222 shares during the period. Casella Waste Systems makes up approximately 1.4% of Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Casella Waste Systems were worth $204,873,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CWST. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 301.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 235.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 280.0% during the 3rd quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 399 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. 99.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays upgraded shares of Casella Waste Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $101.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Monday, May 4th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Friday, June 5th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Casella Waste Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $110.12.

Casella Waste Systems Price Performance

Shares of Casella Waste Systems stock opened at $94.35 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.88. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $74.05 and a twelve month high of $117.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 857.81 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.10. Casella Waste Systems had a net margin of 0.38% and a return on equity of 5.19%. The company had revenue of $457.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $454.49 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casella Waste Systems

In related news, CEO Edmond Coletta sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total value of $1,119,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 140,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,548,968.08. This trade represents a 8.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael K. Burke sold 2,305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.56, for a total transaction of $201,825.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 14,048 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,230,042.88. This represents a 14.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Casella Waste Systems Company Profile

Casella Waste Systems, Inc is a regional resource management company headquartered in Rutland, Vermont. Established in 1975, the company has grown from a single-truck operation into a multi-state provider of integrated waste management solutions. Casella offers a comprehensive range of services, including residential, commercial and industrial waste collection, transfer station operations, landfill disposal, recycling processing and organics management.

Through a network of solid waste transfer stations, recycling facilities and landfills, Casella serves communities primarily across the northeastern United States and parts of the mid-Atlantic region.