Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Stock Rating Upgraded by KeyCorp

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at KeyCorp to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, April 10th,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on CASY. Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 price target on Casey's General Stores and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and set a $450.00 price objective (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Casey's General Stores in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Stephens raised shares of Casey's General Stores to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Casey's General Stores has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $430.33.

Casey's General Stores Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Casey's General Stores stock traded up $2.14 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $459.47. The company had a trading volume of 165,150 shares, compared to its average volume of 283,821. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $420.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $409.32. Casey's General Stores has a fifty-two week low of $306.69 and a fifty-two week high of $468.88. The firm has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a PE ratio of 32.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.74 billion. Casey's General Stores had a return on equity of 17.17% and a net margin of 3.57%. Casey's General Stores's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.33 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Casey's General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,067,615.43. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mike Spanos acquired 256 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $390.54 per share, with a total value of $99,978.24. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,356 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casey's General Stores

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Casey's General Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $236,500,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 54,448.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 543,852 shares of the company's stock valued at $236,054,000 after buying an additional 542,855 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Casey's General Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $175,607,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 160.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 428,201 shares of the company's stock valued at $169,666,000 after purchasing an additional 263,545 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Casey's General Stores by 49.9% in the third 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 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 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.