Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) had its price objective upped by BMO Capital Markets from $450.00 to $515.00 in a research report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on CASY. Wall Street Zen downgraded Casey's General Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Casey's General Stores from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $460.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Gordon Haskett raised Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $490.00 price target on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $453.00.

Casey's General Stores Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Casey's General Stores stock traded down $2.15 on Wednesday, reaching $504.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 193,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 301,690. 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 has a 52 week low of $350.52 and a 52 week high of $511.00. The company has a market capitalization of $18.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.65. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $451.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $425.81.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, June 9th. The company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.69. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.95 billion. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 17.17%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Casey's General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Casey's General Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. This is a boost from Casey's General Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. Casey's General Stores's payout ratio is presently 13.94%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.01, for a total value of $109,252.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,067,615.43. This trade represents a 9.28% decrease 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 0.56% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC lifted its position in Casey's General Stores by 4.1% during the first quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 590 shares of the company's stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the company's stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY raised its stake in Casey's General Stores by 2.1% during the first quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 1,204 shares of the company's stock worth $522,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in Casey's General Stores by 1.4% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,870 shares of the company's stock worth $812,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Casey's General Stores by 40.0% in the 1st quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 91 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. 85.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.