Norges Bank Invests $39.34 Million in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. $CWST

Key Points

• Norges Bank opened a new position in Casella Waste Systems, buying 401,703 shares worth about $39.34 million and owning roughly 0.63% of the company.
• Several analysts remain constructive on CWST, with an overall Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $111.13, though opinions vary from Strong Buy to Sell.
• Casella reported solid quarterly results, beating EPS estimates with $0.20 per share on revenue of $457.33 million, while insiders have recently sold shares, including CEO Edmond Coletta.

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 401,703 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $39,343,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.63% of Casella Waste Systems as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position 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 valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position 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 valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its position 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 valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 294 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Casella Waste Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. 99.51% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CWST has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price 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, Barclays raised shares of Casella Waste Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $101.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Edmond Coletta sold 12,500 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total transaction of $1,119,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 140,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,548,968.08. The trade was a 8.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Bradford John Helgeson sold 405 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total transaction of $35,530.65. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 7,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $644,113.66. The trade was a 5.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 19,422 shares of company stock worth $1,729,647 in the last 90 days. 3.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Casella Waste Systems Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of CWST stock opened at $84.58 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $83.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 768.98 and a beta of 0.77. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $74.05 and a twelve month high of $118.91.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $457.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $454.49 million. Casella Waste Systems had a net margin of 0.38% and a return on equity of 5.19%. The company's revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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