Brokerages Set Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) Target Price at $114.22

Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $114.2222.

Several research firms recently weighed in on CWST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Casella Waste Systems from $112.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Casella Waste Systems from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Zacks Research raised Casella Waste Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $95.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO John W. Casella sold 6,726 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.10, for a total value of $626,190.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 27,989 shares in the company, valued at $2,605,775.90. This represents a 19.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Kevin Drohan sold 675 shares of Casella Waste Systems stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.61, for a total value of $62,511.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 7,462 shares in the company, valued at $691,055.82. The trade was a 8.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,213 shares of company stock valued at $1,045,887. Insiders own 3.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casella Waste Systems

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 180.2% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 297 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 301.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. 99.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Casella Waste Systems Price Performance

CWST stock opened at $93.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 779.65 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $100.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.79. Casella Waste Systems has a 1 year low of $82.22 and a 1 year high of $121.24.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The industrial products company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $469.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $471.32 million. Casella Waste Systems had a net margin of 0.43% and a return on equity of 5.17%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.41 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Casella Waste Systems will post 1.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.