Private Advisor Group LLC Grows Position in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. $CWST

Key Points

• Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 443.3% in the first quarter, ending with 30,876 shares valued at about $2.45 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted holdings, and overall hedge funds and institutions own 99.51% of the company’s shares. Meanwhile, insiders including the CEO and a director recently sold stock.
• Casella Waste Systems reported better-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $0.20 versus $0.10 expected and revenue up 9.6% year over year. Analysts currently rate the stock Moderate Buy with an average price target of $110.12.

Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 443.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,876 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 25,193 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Casella Waste Systems were worth $2,450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 10,865.8% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 990,651 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $97,040,000 after purchasing an additional 981,617 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 60.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,306,780 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $225,926,000 after buying an additional 871,761 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 1,106.7% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 867,285 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $100,067,000 after buying an additional 795,414 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 653.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 841,897 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $82,455,000 after buying an additional 730,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,574,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $643,945,000 after buying an additional 581,310 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.51% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael K. Burke sold 2,305 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.56, for a total transaction of $201,825.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 14,048 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,230,042.88. This trade represents a 14.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Edmond Coletta sold 12,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 140,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,548,968.08. This represents a 8.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Casella Waste Systems Trading Down 3.5%

Casella Waste Systems stock opened at $95.37 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $88.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.69. The company has a market capitalization of $6.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 867.08 and a beta of 0.74. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $74.05 and a 52 week high of $112.88. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.20 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $454.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. Casella Waste Systems's quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.12 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on CWST shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Zacks Research cut Casella Waste Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Casella Waste Systems from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Casella Waste Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $101.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $110.12.

Casella Waste Systems 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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