Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) Hits New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $440.06 and last traded at $436.48, with a volume of 20037 shares. The stock had previously closed at $435.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on CASY. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Casey's General Stores from $460.00 to $470.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Casey's General Stores from $403.00 to $428.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com lowered Casey's General Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Casey's General Stores from $451.00 to $454.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Casey's General Stores presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $424.00.

Casey's General Stores Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $16.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $410.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $395.35.

Casey's General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The company reported $4.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.29 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.03 billion. Casey's General Stores had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 17.17%. The business's revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.24 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Casey's General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casey's General Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mike Spanos purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $396.76 per share, with a total value of $198,380.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,097 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,228,765.72. This represents a 19.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 450 shares of Casey's General Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $427.13, for a total value of $192,208.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at $959,761.11. The trade was a 16.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Casey's General Stores

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in shares of Casey's General Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Casey's General Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Casey's General Stores by 941.7% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Casey's General Stores by 22.5% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 158 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Casey's General Stores by 24.2% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 149 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.63% of the company's stock.

About Casey's General Stores

Casey's General Stores, Inc engages in the provision of management and operation of convenience stores and gasoline stations. It provides self-service gasoline, a wide selection of grocery items, and an array of freshly prepared food items. The firm offers food, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty aids, automotive products, and other non-food items.