KeyCorp Begins Coverage on Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY)

Stock analysts at KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set an "overweight" rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp's price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.32% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 target price on Casey's General Stores and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Casey's General Stores from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Casey's General Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued 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. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $430.33.

Casey's General Stores Stock Performance

CASY stock traded down $7.05 during trading on Friday, hitting $457.36. The company had a trading volume of 162,965 shares, compared to its average volume of 283,491. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $419.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $408.98. Casey's General Stores has a 1-year low of $306.69 and a 1-year high of $468.00. The firm has a market cap of $16.98 billion, a PE ratio of 31.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.57. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 17.17%. The company had revenue of $3.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.33 EPS. The business's revenue was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, 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 other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 2,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,067,615.43. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mike Spanos purchased 256 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $390.54 per share, for a total transaction of $99,978.24. Following the acquisition, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Casey's General Stores

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,799,104 shares of the company's stock worth $1,505,319,000 after acquiring an additional 44,295 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,776,323 shares of the company's stock valued at $703,833,000 after buying an additional 31,131 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Casey's General Stores by 18.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 758,804 shares of the company's stock worth $285,090,000 after buying an additional 119,350 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Casey's General Stores by 29.5% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 678,778 shares of the company's stock worth $268,952,000 after purchasing an additional 154,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 655,488 shares of the company's stock worth $246,335,000 after purchasing an additional 8,428 shares during the period. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.