Casella Waste Systems, Inc. $CWST Stake Raised by Kennedy Capital Management LLC

Kennedy Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) by 42.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 205,569 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 61,187 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned 0.32% of Casella Waste Systems worth $19,504,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CWST. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 1,106.7% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 867,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $100,067,000 after purchasing an additional 795,414 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 39.3% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,010,818 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $190,786,000 after buying an additional 566,887 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Casella Waste Systems in the second quarter worth approximately $55,948,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 20.0% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,597,599 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $299,711,000 after buying an additional 432,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 14.4% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,412,123 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $393,691,000 after buying an additional 428,909 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.51% of the company’s stock.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Casella Waste Systems stock traded down $1.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $89.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 148,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 747,742. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $82.22 and a 1-year high of $121.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 746.29 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $100.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.50.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.08. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 5.17% and a net margin of 0.43%.The firm had revenue of $469.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.32 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.41 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Casella Waste Systems news, CAO Kevin Drohan sold 675 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $62,511.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 7,462 shares in the company, valued at $691,055.82. This represents a 8.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Edmond Coletta sold 3,812 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.70, for a total transaction of $357,184.40. Following the sale, the president directly owned 147,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,782,426.70. This trade represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,213 shares of company stock worth $1,045,887. 3.81% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CWST has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered Casella Waste Systems from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on Casella Waste Systems from $95.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Casella Waste Systems and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Casella Waste Systems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $113.11.

About Casella Waste Systems

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.