8-K

CASELLA WASTE SYSTEMS, INC.

Date: September 18, 2024

/s/ Bradford J. Helgeson

Bradford J. Helgeson

Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): September 17, 2024

Casella Waste Systems, Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

Delaware

000-23211

03-0338873

(State or Other Jurisdiction

of Incorporation)

(Commission

File Number)

(IRS Employer

Identification No.)

25 Greens Hill Lane

Rutland, Vermont

05701

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (802) 775-0325

Not applicable

(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

☐	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class

Trading
Symbol(s)

Name of each exchange

on which registered

Class A common stock, $0.01 par value per share

CWST

The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

(Nasdaq Global Select Market)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 1.01

Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On September 17, 2024, Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Raymond James & Associates, Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated acting as the representatives of the several underwriters named therein (collectively, the “Underwriters”), relating to an underwritten public offering of 4,500,000 shares (the “Underwritten Shares”) of the Company’s Class A common stock, $0.01 par value per share (the “Common Stock”), being sold by the Company. The offering price of the Underwritten Shares to the public is $100.00 per share, and the Underwriters agreed to purchase the Underwritten Shares from the Company pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement at a price of $96.00 per share. After deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses, the Company expects to receive net proceeds from the offering of the Underwritten Shares of approximately $431.4 million.

Under the terms of the Underwriting Agreement, the Company has granted the Underwriters an option, exercisable for 30 days, to purchase up to an additional 675,000 shares of Common Stock (the “Option Shares” and together with the Underwritten Shares, the “Shares”) at the public offering price per share less the underwriting discounts and commissions. If the Underwriters exercise in full their option to purchase the Option Shares, the Company would expect to receive net proceeds of approximately $496.2 million after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses.

The Shares will be issued pursuant to the Company’s automatically effective shelf registration statement on Form S-3 that the Company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on October 29, 2021 (File No. 333-260602). A prospectus supplement relating to the offering has been filed with the SEC. The closing of the offering is expected to take place on September 19, 2024, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

The Underwriting Agreement contains customary representations, warranties, covenants and agreements by the Company, customary conditions to closing, indemnification obligations of the Company and the Underwriters, including for liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, other obligations of the parties and termination provisions. The representations, warranties and covenants contained in the Underwriting Agreement were made only for purposes of such agreement and as of specific dates, were solely for the benefit of the parties to such agreement, and may be subject to limitations agreed upon by the contracting parties. A copy of the Underwriting Agreement is attached as Exhibit 1.1 hereto and is incorporated herein by reference. The foregoing description of the Underwriting Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to such exhibit.

Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, counsel to the Company, has issued a legal opinion with respect to the Shares. A copy of such opinion, including the consent included therein, is attached as Exhibit 5.1 hereto.

Item 8.01

Other Events.

The full text of the press release issued on September 18, 2024 announcing the pricing of the underwritten public offering is attached as Exhibit 99.1 hereto and is incorporated herein by reference.

Item 9.01

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits


Exhibit No.		Exhibit Description

1.1		Underwriting Agreement, dated September 17, 2024, by and among Casella Waste Systems, Inc. and Raymond James & Associates, Inc., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC and Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, as representatives of the several underwriters listed on Schedule I thereto

5.1		Opinion of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP

23.1		Consent of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1)

99.1		Press release issued September 18, 2024

101.SCH		Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document.**

101.CAL		Inline XBRL Taxonomy Calculation Linkbase Document.**

101.LAB		Inline XBRL Taxonomy Label Linkbase Document.**

101.PRE		Inline XBRL Taxonomy Presentation Linkbase Document.**

101.DEF		Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document.**

104		Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as inline XBRL with applicable taxonomy extension information contained in Exhibits 101).

**		Submitted Electronically Herewith.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters discussed in this Current Report on Form 8-K, including, among others, the anticipated closing of the offering and the anticipated proceeds from the offering, are “forward-looking statements” intended to qualify for the safe harbors from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified as such by the context of the statements, including words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “intend,” “estimate,” “guidance” and other similar expressions, whether in the negative or affirmative. Such forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, any one or more of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the Company’s forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include or relate to, among other things: market conditions and the Company’s ability to consummate the offering on the anticipated terms or at all, as well as additional risks and uncertainties detailed in the “Risk Factors” section of the prospectus supplement related to the offering filed with the SEC on September 18, 2024, in the Company’s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, in the Company’s most recently filed Form 10-Q and in other filings that the Company periodically makes with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K speak only as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

SEC Form 8-K filed by Casella Waste Systems Inc.