South Dakota Investment Council Trims Stock Position in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. $CASY

South Dakota Investment Council decreased its stake in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 11.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,582 shares of the company’s stock after selling 810 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $4,791,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 179,938.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 2,657,687 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 310,470 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 760,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $420,416,000 after purchasing an additional 52,250 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 572,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $316,234,000 after purchasing an additional 64,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $265,163,000. 85.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of CASY stock opened at $867.50 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business’s 50 day moving average is $822.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $751.53. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $490.00 and a twelve month high of $927.85.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $4.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, August 1st will be paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Casey’s General Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Casey’s General Stores from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Capital One Financial assumed coverage on Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $896.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $913.00 price objective on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $719.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,069.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $944.20.

Insider Activity at Casey’s General Stores

In other Casey’s General Stores news, CEO Darren M. Rebelez sold 19,000 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $801.46, for a total value of $15,227,740.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 89,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $71,469,394.04. The trade was a 17.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stephen P. Bramlage, Jr. sold 5,700 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $838.16, for a total value of $4,777,512.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 29,677 shares in the company, valued at $24,874,074.32. This represents a 16.11% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 30,243 shares of company stock worth $24,421,877 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.67% 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.