Sanctuary Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Casey's General Stores, Inc. $CASY

Key Points

• Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its Casey’s General Stores stake by 5.8% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 22,026 shares valued at about $16.0 million.
• Insider selling continued, with CEO Darren M. Rebelez and Director Allison M. Wing both selling shares in July; insiders have sold 30,243 shares worth about $24.4 million over the last 90 days.
• Casey’s reported strong quarterly results and raised its dividend to $0.65 per share from $0.57, while analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $940.

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) by 5.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,026 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,217 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC owned 0.06% of Casey's General Stores worth $16,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CASY. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 760,438 shares of the company's stock valued at $420,416,000 after buying an additional 52,250 shares during the period. North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in Casey's General Stores during the fourth quarter valued at $720,000. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY increased its position in Casey's General Stores by 103.5% during the first quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 2,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,782,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Casey's General Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $1,338,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 140,491 shares of the company's stock worth $77,651,000 after acquiring an additional 3,553 shares during the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey's General Stores

In related news, CEO Darren M. Rebelez sold 19,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $801.46, for a total value of $15,227,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 89,174 shares of the company's stock, valued at $71,469,394.04. This represents a 17.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Allison M. Wing sold 530 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $837.58, for a total transaction of $443,917.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,547,918.36. The trade was a 14.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,243 shares of company stock worth $24,421,877. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CASY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. William Blair assumed coverage on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Capital One Financial began coverage on Casey's General Stores in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $896.00 target price on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on Casey's General Stores from $1,032.00 to $995.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $990.00 price target on shares of Casey's General Stores in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Casey's General Stores from $695.00 to $795.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $940.00.

Casey's General Stores Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of CASY opened at $827.04 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.16, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Casey's General Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $490.00 and a 1-year high of $927.85. The company has a 50-day moving average of $822.56 and a 200 day moving average of $730.75.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.31 by $1.06. The business had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.33 billion. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 4.07% and a return on equity of 18.73%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.63 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 21.14 EPS for the current year.

Casey's General Stores Increases Dividend

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

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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