Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold”

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on CASY. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $662.00 to $713.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $688.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $700.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Casey’s General Stores from $530.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $698.20.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Down 0.8%

CASY opened at $659.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $653.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $585.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. Casey’s General Stores has a 12 month low of $391.55 and a 12 month high of $696.66.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 9th. The company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.55. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 3.83% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The company had revenue of $3.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $683.04, for a total value of $136,608.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,039 shares in the company, valued at $2,758,798.56. This trade represents a 4.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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, for a total transaction 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 represents a 59.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CASY. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Casey’s General Stores during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring 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 valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 350.0% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 54 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in Casey’s General Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.