Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) Shares Bought by Wasatch Advisors LP

Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST - Free Report) by 48.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,577,308 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 838,086 shares during the period. Casella Waste Systems comprises approximately 1.4% of Wasatch Advisors LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Wasatch Advisors LP owned approximately 4.07% of Casella Waste Systems worth $272,705,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Casella Waste Systems by 279.3% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,061 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 2,254 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 3,671 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 104.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 269,685 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,535,000 after acquiring an additional 137,779 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,388 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $676,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in Casella Waste Systems by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 11,174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.51% of the company's stock.

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 stock was sold at an average price of $118.67, for a total value of $237,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 20,347 shares in the company, valued at $2,414,578.49. This trade represents a 8.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 4.24% of the company's stock.

Casella Waste Systems Stock Up 0.3 %

CWST stock traded up $0.34 on Friday, hitting $118.30. 696,332 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 356,834. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $111.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.16. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $86.41 and a 12-month high of $120.69. The stock has a market cap of $7.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 514.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.96. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $0.41 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 1.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CWST shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Casella Waste Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $115.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $130.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Casella Waste Systems from $127.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Casella Waste Systems presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.67.

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.