Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $1.47 Billion Position in Casey's General Stores, Inc. $CASY

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management dramatically increased its stake in Casey’s General Stores during the fourth quarter, ending with about 2.66 million shares worth roughly $1.47 billion. The position represented about 7.17% of Casey’s and was its 21st-largest holding.
• Insider trading was mixed: Director Mike Spanos bought 300 shares, while insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 200 shares. Institutional investors still own a large majority of the company, at 85.63%.
• Analysts remain generally positive on CASY, with several raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at “Moderate Buy” with a target price of $725.09. The stock was also trading near $852.75, above that consensus target.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) by 179,938.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,659,164 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,657,687 shares during the quarter. Casey's General Stores comprises about 0.7% of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. owned approximately 7.17% of Casey's General Stores worth $1,469,747,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Donoghue Forlines LLC bought a new position in shares of Casey's General Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,373,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Casey's General Stores by 20.3% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC now owns 9,737 shares of the company's stock worth $5,382,000 after acquiring an additional 1,645 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Advisors of Iowa LLC grew its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Advisors of Iowa LLC now owns 2,243 shares of the company's stock worth $1,240,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its stake in Casey's General Stores by 75.4% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 7,176 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,966,000 after purchasing an additional 3,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.63% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Casey's General Stores news, Director Mike Spanos acquired 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $665.43 per share, with a total value of $199,629.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 4,499 shares in the company, valued at $2,993,769.57. This trade represents a 7.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 200 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.04, for a total transaction of $136,608.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 4,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,758,798.56. The trade was a 4.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on CASY shares. Zacks Research raised Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Casey's General Stores from $725.00 to $745.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $662.00 to $713.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Casey's General Stores from $830.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $725.09.

Casey's General Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Casey's General Stores stock opened at $852.75 on Friday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $751.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $647.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.64 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 firm has a market capitalization of $31.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.65.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 9th. The company reported $3.49 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.33 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 18.24 EPS for the current year.

Casey's General Stores Dividend Announcement

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

About Casey's General Stores

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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