Zacks Investment Management Raises Holdings in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Zacks Investment Management boosted its stake in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) by 9.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,779 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,273 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management owned approximately 0.13% of Casey's General Stores worth $18,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of CASY. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Casey's General Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $236,500,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Casey's General Stores during the fourth quarter worth $175,607,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Casey's General Stores by 160.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 428,201 shares of the company's stock worth $169,666,000 after purchasing an additional 263,545 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 49.9% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 524,237 shares of the company's stock worth $204,861,000 after purchasing an additional 174,586 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Casey's General Stores by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 758,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,090,000 after purchasing an additional 119,350 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CASY has been the topic of several analyst reports. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Casey's General Stores in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $500.00 target price on the stock. Gordon Haskett raised Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com downgraded Casey's General Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Stephens raised Casey's General Stores to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $430.33.

Casey's General Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Casey's General Stores stock traded up $8.70 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $460.40. 57,023 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 283,174. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50-day moving average of $421.79 and a 200-day moving average of $411.62. Casey's General Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $309.51 and a 1 year high of $468.88.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 17.17%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.33 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casey's General Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 1st. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

About Casey's General Stores

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.