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

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

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Northcoast Research downgraded Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $688.00 price objective on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $662.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Casey’s General Stores currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $624.09.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:CASY opened at $606.50 on Friday. Casey’s General Stores has a one year low of $372.08 and a one year high of $647.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $579.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $548.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $5.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.92 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $4.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.51 billion. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 16.89% and a net margin of 3.58%.Casey’s General Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.85 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Casey’s General Stores will post 13.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Moats Maria Castanon purchased 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $554.66 per share, with a total value of $166,398.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $445,391.98. This represents a 59.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Casey’s General Stores

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new stake in Casey’s General Stores in the third quarter worth $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 100.0% during the third quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 52.8% in the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 350.0% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 54 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nvwm LLC bought a new stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. 85.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.