Versor Investments LP Takes Position in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST)

Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $527,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 6.4% in the 3rd 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. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Casella Waste Systems by 1.8% in the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,730 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Casella Waste Systems by 76.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 321 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its position in Casella Waste Systems by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 16,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,610,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Casella Waste Systems by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 10,436 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,035,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the period. 99.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Casella Waste Systems Price Performance

Shares of CWST stock opened at $109.88 on Thursday. Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.16 and a fifty-two week high of $111.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 2.48 and a current ratio of 2.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 915.67, a PEG ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.99. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $102.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.23.

Casella Waste Systems (NASDAQ:CWST) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The industrial products company reported $0.27 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $412.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Casella Waste Systems, Inc. will post 0.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Paul Ligon sold 1,730 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.81, for a total value of $184,781.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 21,085 shares in the company, valued at $2,252,088.85. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 4.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and set a $117.00 price objective (up from $110.00) on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of 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. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Casella Waste Systems from $121.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, William Blair began coverage on shares of Casella Waste Systems in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Casella Waste Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.50.

Casella Waste Systems Company 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.