Casey’s General Stores, Inc. $CASY Stock Position Increased by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 250.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,536 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,526 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $2,574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised 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. boosted 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 worth $590,671,000 after buying an additional 310,470 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew 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 buying an additional 52,250 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew 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 buying an additional 64,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Casey’s General Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $265,163,000. Institutional investors own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on CASY. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Casey’s General Stores from $695.00 to $795.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,069.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised Casey’s General Stores from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $950.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, June 29th. Capital One Financial started coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $896.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Casey’s General Stores to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $940.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In related news, insider Chad Michael Frazell sold 3,013 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $787.49, for a total transaction of $2,372,707.37. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,735,514.27. The trade was a 23.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Darren M. Rebelez sold 19,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $801.46, for a total transaction of $15,227,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 89,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,469,394.04. This trade represents a 17.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,243 shares of company stock valued at $24,421,877. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Casey’s General Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CASY opened at $861.63 on Friday. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $490.00 and a 12 month high of $927.85. The stock has a market cap of $31.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.97, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $821.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $742.33. 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 (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.31 by $1.06. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 18.73% and a net margin of 4.07%.The firm had revenue of $4.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.63 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 21.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Casey’s General Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Saturday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is an increase from Casey’s General Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.90%.

Casey’s General Stores 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.