Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Reaches New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $647.99 and last traded at $643.43, with a volume of 30712 shares. The stock had previously closed at $640.41.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CASY. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Monday, December 29th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $730.00 price target for the company. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on Casey’s General Stores from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Casey’s General Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $614.91.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $23.18 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business’s fifty day moving average is $569.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $544.02.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $5.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.92 by $0.61. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 3.58%.The company had revenue of $4.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.85 earnings per share. Casey’s General Stores’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Casey’s General Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, February 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In other news, Director Moats Maria Castanon acquired 300 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $554.66 per share, with a total value of $166,398.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $445,391.98. This trade represents a 59.64% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CASY. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $463,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 2.1% during the third quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC now owns 858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 9.1% during the third quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 227 shares of the company’s stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 52.8% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 724 shares of the company’s stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

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.