AdvisorShares Investments LLC Trims Stock Position in Casey's General Stores, Inc. $CASY

Key Points

• AdvisorShares Investments LLC trimmed its Casey’s General Stores stake by 10.1% in Q1, though the position remained sizable at 11,843 shares valued at about $8.62 million.
• Casey’s reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.37 beating estimates by $1.06 and revenue rising 14.5% year over year to $4.57 billion.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.65 per share from $0.57, while analysts still see the stock as a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $939.29.

AdvisorShares Investments LLC reduced its holdings in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) by 10.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,843 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,327 shares during the quarter. Casey's General Stores accounts for about 1.6% of AdvisorShares Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. AdvisorShares Investments LLC's holdings in Casey's General Stores were worth $8,620,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CASY. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the company's stock worth $812,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Casey's General Stores by 129.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 186 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Casey's General Stores by 431.7% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 218 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Amundi acquired a new position in shares of Casey's General Stores in the second quarter valued at approximately $338,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 42.6% in the second quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 968 shares of the company's stock valued at $494,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. 85.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CASY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Casey's General Stores from $700.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Casey's General Stores from $805.00 to $945.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Casey's General Stores from $695.00 to $795.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Zacks Research downgraded Casey's General Stores from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $990.00 price target on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $939.29.

Casey's General Stores Price Performance

CASY stock opened at $797.42 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $29.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.62. Casey's General Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $490.00 and a twelve month high of $927.85. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $820.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $712.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.31 by $1.06. Casey's General Stores had a return on equity of 18.73% and a net margin of 4.07%.The company had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.63 EPS. The business's revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 21.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casey's General Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 1st will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This is an increase from Casey's General Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 31st. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio is 11.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey's General Stores

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 2,000 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $800.00, for a total value of $1,600,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 6,668 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,334,400. This trade represents a 23.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Mike Spanos acquired 256 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $778.81 per share, for a total transaction of $199,375.36. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 4,758 shares in the company, valued at $3,705,577.98. The trade was a 5.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Casey's General Stores Company Profile

Casey's General Stores, Inc NASDAQ: CASY is a U.S.-based convenience store chain that operates retail fuel stations and food-focused convenience outlets. Founded in 1959 in Boone, Iowa, the company has grown from a single neighborhood store into a regional operator known for combining traditional convenience retailing—fuel, packaged goods and tobacco—with a larger emphasis on fresh and prepared foods.

The company's stores typically offer gasoline and diesel alongside a range of grocery essentials, grab-and-go items and made-to-order foodservice.

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