Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $113.80.

A number of analysts have commented on the company. William Blair assumed coverage on Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $114.00 to $107.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $117.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Casella Waste Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $115.00 to $113.00 in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Casella Waste Systems Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of CWST stock opened at $106.91 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 890.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 1.03. Casella Waste Systems has a 1 year low of $84.45 and a 1 year high of $114.88. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $108.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $105.40. The company has a current ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 2.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.28 by ($0.01). Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 3.04% and a net margin of 0.46%. The company had revenue of $411.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $412.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Casella Waste Systems will post 0.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Casella Waste Systems

In related news, SVP Paul Ligon sold 1,730 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.81, for a total transaction of $184,781.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 21,085 shares in the company, valued at $2,252,088.85. This represents a 7.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 4.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casella Waste Systems

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Amalgamated Bank increased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 6.4% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 7,607 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $805,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 5.9% during the second quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,633 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 64.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. 99.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.