Zacks Research Upgrades Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) to “Strong-Buy”

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on CASY. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $585.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Stephens upped their price objective on 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. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $530.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $688.00 price target on Casey’s General Stores in a report on Thursday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $595.90.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Up 2.7%

Casey’s General Stores stock traded up $16.50 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $621.13. 86,277 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 266,879. 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $557.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $539.17. Casey’s General Stores has a fifty-two week low of $372.08 and a fifty-two week high of $621.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.22, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.67.

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 the consensus estimate of $4.92 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $4.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.51 billion. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 3.58% and a return on equity of 16.89%. Casey’s General Stores’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.85 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Casey’s General Stores news, Director Moats Maria Castanon bought 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $554.66 per share, for a total transaction of $166,398.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $445,391.98. The trade was a 59.64% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casey’s General Stores

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CASY. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 52.8% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 350.0% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 54 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Nvwm LLC purchased a new position in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other 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.