Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $868.43 and last traded at $864.82, with a volume of 25142 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $859.49.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CASY has been the topic of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $700.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Zacks Research raised shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $600.00 to $706.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $680.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $719.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $725.09.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $740.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $640.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market cap of $32.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.78, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.65.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 9th. The company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.55. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $3.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. Casey’s General Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 18.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Casey’s General Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 1st. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 13.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In other Casey’s General Stores news, Director Mike Spanos purchased 300 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $665.43 per share, for a total transaction of $199,629.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,499 shares in the company, valued at $2,993,769.57. This trade represents a 7.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.04, for a total transaction of $136,608.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 4,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,758,798.56. This trade represents a 4.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Casey’s General Stores

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Casey’s General Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $1,018,000. Advisors Capital Management LLC raised its position in Casey’s General Stores by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 48,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,336,000 after buying an additional 2,026 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in Casey’s General Stores by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 191,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,065,000 after buying an additional 1,950 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its position in Casey’s General Stores by 61.6% during the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 2,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,454,000 after buying an additional 980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Casey’s General Stores by 82.3% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,456,000 after buying an additional 1,162 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

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.