Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) Shares Acquired by MetLife Investment Management LLC

MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its position in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 37,450 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,392 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Casella Waste Systems worth $3,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CWST. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in Casella Waste Systems by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,577,308 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $272,705,000 after purchasing an additional 838,086 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,785,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,326,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Casella Waste Systems by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,644,476 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $174,002,000 after acquiring an additional 190,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 495,294 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,604,000 after acquiring an additional 144,212 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.51% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CWST shares. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $127.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Casella Waste Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $115.00 to $113.00 in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Casella Waste Systems has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $122.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Paul Ligon sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,414,578.49. This trade represents a 8.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 4.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of CWST stock traded down $0.63 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $116.82. 119,199 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 361,654. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 508.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.96. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $88.89 and a one year high of $120.69. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $111.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $109.07. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.25. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 4.15% and a net margin of 0.87%. Sell-side analysts predict that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casella Waste Systems 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.