Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Upgraded at Stephens

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Stephens to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com cut Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Gordon Haskett raised Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Casey’s General Stores from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 price target on Casey’s General Stores and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $424.00.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of CASY opened at $416.49 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $416.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $406.03. Casey’s General Stores has a 12-month low of $306.45 and a 12-month high of $458.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 17.17% and a net margin of 3.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.33 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Casey’s General Stores

In related news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $437.01, for a total transaction of $109,252.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,067,615.43. This trade represents a 9.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mike Spanos acquired 256 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $390.54 per share, with a total value of $99,978.24. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,310,652.24. The trade was a 8.26 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 8,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 3,065 shares during the last quarter. Scholtz & Company LLC purchased a new position in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the fourth quarter worth $2,375,000. JLB & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. JLB & Associates Inc. now owns 43,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,049,000 after buying an additional 749 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 53,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,131,000 after acquiring an additional 4,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, South Dakota Investment Council grew its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 10,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,988,000 after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares in the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Casey’s General Stores Company Profile

Casey’s General Stores, Inc engages in the provision of management and operation of convenience stores and gasoline stations. It provides self-service gasoline, a wide selection of grocery items, and an array of freshly prepared food items. The firm offers food, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty aids, automotive products, and other non-food items.