Don't Ignore The Insider Selling In Casella Waste Systems

Some Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CWST) shareholders may be a little concerned to see that the President, Edmond Coletta, recently sold a substantial US$700k worth of stock at a price of US$100 per share. However, that sale only accounted for 4.9% of their holding, so arguably it doesn't say much about their conviction.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Casella Waste Systems

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Chairman, John Casella, sold US$2.2m worth of shares at a price of US$120 per share. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. The good news is that this large sale was at well above current price of US$98.95. So it may not tell us anything about how insiders feel about the current share price.

Casella Waste Systems insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction!

View our latest analysis for Casella Waste Systems

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Does Casella Waste Systems Boast High Insider Ownership?

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. It's great to see that Casella Waste Systems insiders own 2.1% of the company, worth about US$131m. This kind of significant ownership by insiders does generally increase the chance that the company is run in the interest of all shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Casella Waste Systems Insiders?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. On the plus side, Casella Waste Systems makes money, and is growing profits. The company boasts high insider ownership, but we're a little hesitant, given the history of share sales. In addition to knowing about insider transactions going on, it's beneficial to identify the risks facing Casella Waste Systems. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Casella Waste Systems (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) you should know about.

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For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.