TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. $CWST

Key Points

• TimesSquare Capital Management trimmed its Casella Waste Systems position by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 597,810 shares worth about $58.6 million.
• Casella Waste Systems reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $0.20 per share versus $0.10 expected and revenue of $457.33 million, up 9.6% year over year.
• Wall Street remains generally constructive on the stock, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $111.13, even as some analysts trimmed targets or issued more cautious views.

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 597,810 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 11,365 shares during the quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.94% of Casella Waste Systems worth $58,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in CWST. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 10,865.8% during 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 last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 1,106.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 867,285 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $100,067,000 after buying an additional 795,414 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 653.2% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 841,897 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $82,455,000 after buying an additional 730,128 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 9.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,574,893 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $643,945,000 after buying an additional 581,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,010,818 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $190,786,000 after buying an additional 566,887 shares in the last quarter. 99.51% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Up 3.4%

Shares of CWST stock opened at $88.10 on Tuesday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $83.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a PE ratio of 800.98 and a beta of 0.77. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $74.05 and a fifty-two week high of $118.91.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $457.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $454.49 million. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 5.19% and a net margin of 0.38%.The company's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered Casella Waste Systems from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Barclays raised Casella Waste Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $101.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $111.13.

Insider Transactions at Casella Waste Systems

In other news, CFO Bradford John Helgeson sold 405 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total value of $35,530.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 7,342 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $644,113.66. This represents a 5.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Kevin Drohan sold 675 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $62,511.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,462 shares in the company, valued at $691,055.82. This represents a 8.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 15,830 shares of company stock valued at $1,454,208 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.78% 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.

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