Zacks Research Upgrades Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) to Hold

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group decreased their target price on Casella Waste Systems from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 26th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Friday, June 5th. Barclays upgraded shares of Casella Waste Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $101.00 to $102.00 in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.12.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Down 3.5%

NASDAQ CWST opened at $95.37 on Wednesday. Casella Waste Systems has a 1 year low of $74.05 and a 1 year high of $112.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.07 billion, a PE ratio of 867.08 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The business’s 50-day moving average is $88.13 and its 200 day moving average is $91.69.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.10. Casella Waste Systems had a return on equity of 5.19% and a net margin of 0.38%.The business had revenue of $457.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $454.49 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.19 EPS. Casella Waste Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Casella Waste Systems will post 1.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casella Waste Systems

In other news, Director Michael K. Burke sold 2,305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.56, for a total transaction of $201,825.80. Following the sale, the director owned 14,048 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,230,042.88. The trade was a 14.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Edmond Coletta sold 12,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.56, for a total transaction of $1,119,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 140,118 shares in the company, valued at $12,548,968.08. This represents a 8.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 3.78% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Casella Waste Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,574,893 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $643,945,000 after purchasing an additional 581,310 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 3,765,442 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $368,787,000 after buying an additional 56,914 shares in the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 1.0% in the first quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,804,475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $222,507,000 after acquiring an additional 27,148 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,703,855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $264,816,000 after acquiring an additional 300,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,488,034 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $243,678,000 after acquiring an additional 477,216 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.51% 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.