Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Grows Stake in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 8.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,432 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,456 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC owned 0.07% of Casella Waste Systems worth $4,807,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC increased its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 29.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 131,906 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $13,122,000 after acquiring an additional 29,686 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 71.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,497 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 397,261 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $42,034,000 after purchasing an additional 7,910 shares during the period. Longboard Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems during the 4th quarter worth about $221,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 1,606.7% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 256 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. 99.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on CWST. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $127.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Casella Waste Systems presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $122.67.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of CWST traded up $1.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $117.10. 396,415 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 385,687. The stock's 50-day moving average is $114.72 and its 200-day moving average is $111.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 2.48 and a current ratio of 2.00. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.01 and a fifty-two week high of $121.24. The company has a market cap of $7.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 509.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.86.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.08. Casella Waste Systems had a net margin of 0.87% and a return on equity of 4.15%. The company had revenue of $417.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $403.64 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 22.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Paul Ligon sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.67, for a total transaction of $237,340.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,578.49. This represents a 8.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Edmond Coletta sold 5,562 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.18, for a total transaction of $662,879.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now owns 150,093 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,888,083.74. This represents a 3.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.81% of the company's stock.

Casella Waste Systems Company Profile

Casella Waste Systems, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a vertically integrated solid waste services company in the United States. It offers resource management services primarily in the areas of solid waste collection and disposal, transfer, recycling, and organics services to residential, commercial, municipal, institutional, and industrial customers.