Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $114.2222.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Casella Waste Systems from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Casella Waste Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $120.00 target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Down 3.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:CWST traded down $3.45 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $94.03. The company had a trading volume of 726,210 shares, compared to its average volume of 862,802. Casella Waste Systems has a 1-year low of $82.22 and a 1-year high of $121.24. The stock has a market cap of $5.97 billion, a PE ratio of 783.65 and a beta of 0.80. 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $100.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.78.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $469.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $471.32 million. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 5.17% and a net margin of 0.43%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Casella Waste Systems will post 1.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Edmond Coletta sold 3,812 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.70, for a total value of $357,184.40. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Kevin Drohan sold 675 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $62,511.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 7,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $691,055.82. This represents a 8.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 11,213 shares of company stock valued at $1,045,887 over the last 90 days. 3.81% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Casella Waste Systems

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 297 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 301.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Casella Waste Systems in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new position in Casella Waste Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.51% of the company’s stock.

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.