North Dakota State Investment Board Acquires New Position in Casey's General Stores, Inc. $CASY

Key Points

• North Dakota State Investment Board opened a new position in Casey’s General Stores during Q4, buying 1,303 shares worth about $720,000.
• Other institutional investors also added to their stakes, and 85.63% of Casey’s stock is now held by institutions and hedge funds. Insider activity was mixed, with Director Mike Spanos buying shares while Katrina S. Lindsey sold shares.
• Casey’s posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $3.49 versus $2.94 expected, and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.57 per share. Analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $737.36.

North Dakota State Investment Board acquired a new stake in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,303 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $720,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,292,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 52.8% in the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 55 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 9.1% in the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 227 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 47.6% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 62 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 2.9% in the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 720 shares of the company's stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mike Spanos acquired 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $665.43 per share, for a total transaction of $199,629.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 4,499 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,993,769.57. The trade was a 7.14% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.04, for a total transaction of $136,608.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 4,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,758,798.56. The trade was a 4.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Casey's General Stores Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of CASY stock opened at $852.51 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $763.05 and a 200-day moving average of $654.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Casey's General Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $433.16 and a 12-month high of $901.00. The company has a market capitalization of $31.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.65.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 9th. The company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.55. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The business had revenue of $3.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.33 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 18.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Casey's General Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 1st. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CASY has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Casey's General Stores from $830.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Casey's General Stores from $530.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Casey's General Stores from $725.00 to $745.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research note on Friday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Casey's General Stores currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $737.36.

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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