Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Sets New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Casey's General Stores reached a new 52-week high of $562.97, with the last trading price at $560.36, after closing at $553.89.
• Analysts are optimistic about the stock, with multiple upgrades, including Jefferies raising the price target to $600 and Royal Bank of Canada adjusting to $542, while overall the stock holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy."
• Casey's reported $5.77 earnings per share for the latest quarter, surpassing expectations of $5.02, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.57 per share, payable on November 14th.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $562.97 and last traded at $560.36, with a volume of 43117 shares. The stock had previously closed at $553.89.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CASY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Casey's General Stores from $468.00 to $542.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $575.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $515.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $560.00 to $580.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $505.25.

Casey's General Stores Trading Up 0.2%

The stock has a market capitalization of $20.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.62 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $516.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $472.88.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 8th. The company reported $5.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.02 by $0.75. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.54% and a return on equity of 16.73%. The firm had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 EPS for the current year.

Casey's General Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, November 1st will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.63%.

Insider Transactions at Casey's General Stores

In other news, CEO Darren M. Rebelez sold 20,000 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $507.83, for a total transaction of $10,156,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 89,840 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,623,447.20. This trade represents a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 2,000 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $506.07, for a total transaction of $1,012,140.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,346,140.52. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 36,046 shares of company stock valued at $18,294,656. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casey's General Stores

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in Casey's General Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its position in Casey's General Stores by 325.0% in the 1st quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 68 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Casey's General Stores in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Nvwm LLC bought a new stake in Casey's General Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC lifted its position in Casey's General Stores by 580.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 68 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Casey's General Stores Company Profile

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.

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