CI Investments Inc. Cuts Stake in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. $CASY

CI Investments Inc. reduced its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 8.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,599 shares of the company’s stock after selling 626 shares during the quarter. CI Investments Inc.’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $4,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 179,938.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,659,164 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,469,747,000 after buying an additional 2,657,687 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,068,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $590,671,000 after acquiring an additional 310,470 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 760,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $420,416,000 after acquiring an additional 52,250 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 572,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,234,000 after acquiring an additional 64,154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Casey’s General Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $265,163,000. 85.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group increased their target price on Casey’s General Stores from $805.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. William Blair assumed coverage on Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on Casey’s General Stores from $1,032.00 to $995.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,069.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Casey’s General Stores from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Casey’s General Stores presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $940.00.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Up 2.2%

CASY opened at $875.25 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.68, a PEG ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $821.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $741.49. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $490.00 and a twelve month high of $927.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $1.06. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 4.07% and a return on equity of 18.73%. The company had revenue of $4.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.63 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 21.14 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend 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 payout ratio is currently 11.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In other Casey’s General Stores news, CFO Stephen P. Bramlage, Jr. sold 5,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $838.16, for a total transaction of $4,777,512.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 29,677 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,874,074.32. This trade represents a 16.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Chad Michael Frazell sold 3,013 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $787.49, for a total value of $2,372,707.37. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 9,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,735,514.27. The trade was a 23.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 30,243 shares of company stock valued at $24,421,877 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

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.