Rhumbline Advisers Grows Position in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST)

Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,720 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,862 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.14% of Casella Waste Systems worth $10,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 124.4% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 276 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Casella Waste Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 156.5% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 318 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 171.6% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 364 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Casella Waste Systems during the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.51% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Casella Waste Systems

In related news, 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 directly owns 150,093 shares in the company, valued at $17,888,083.74. The trade was a 3.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Paul Ligon sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.67, for a total value of $237,340.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,347 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,414,578.49. The trade was a 8.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.81% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Friday, June 6th. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $127.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $130.00 price target on the stock. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $122.67.

Casella Waste Systems Price Performance

Casella Waste Systems stock traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $117.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 295,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 389,663. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.47 billion, a PE ratio of 512.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.86. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.01 and a fifty-two week high of $121.24. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $115.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.45. 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 (NASDAQ:CWST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $417.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $403.64 million. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 4.15% and a net margin of 0.87%. The company's revenue was up 22.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

About Casella Waste Systems

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.