Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

CASY has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $662.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Casey’s General Stores from $610.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $700.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $621.00.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of CASY stock opened at $681.48 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $25.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Casey’s General Stores has a fifty-two week low of $372.08 and a fifty-two week high of $684.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $613.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $565.33.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $5.53 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.92 by $0.61. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 3.58% and a return on equity of 16.89%. The business had revenue of $4.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.85 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Casey’s General Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Investors of record on Sunday, February 1st were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Casey’s General Stores news, Director Moats Maria Castanon purchased 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $554.66 per share, with a total value of $166,398.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $445,391.98. This represents a 59.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of CASY. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new position in Casey’s General Stores during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 52.8% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 350.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 54 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Nvwm LLC acquired a new position in Casey’s General Stores in the second quarter valued at $32,000. 85.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Casey’s General Stores Company Profile

Casey’s General Stores, Inc (NASDAQ: CASY) is a U.S.-based convenience store chain that operates retail fuel stations and food-focused convenience outlets. Founded in 1959 in Boone, Iowa, the company has grown from a single neighborhood store into a regional operator known for combining traditional convenience retailing—fuel, packaged goods and tobacco—with a larger emphasis on fresh and prepared foods.

The company’s stores typically offer gasoline and diesel alongside a range of grocery essentials, grab-and-go items and made-to-order foodservice.