Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Casey's General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 242,604 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,271 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.65% of Casey's General Stores worth $96,127,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CASY. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Casey's General Stores by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,201 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,665,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. James Investment Research Inc. raised its position in Casey's General Stores by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. James Investment Research Inc. now owns 8,561 shares of the company's stock worth $3,392,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares in the last quarter. WD Rutherford LLC lifted its holdings in Casey's General Stores by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. WD Rutherford LLC now owns 8,425 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,338,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Casey's General Stores by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 590 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Casey's General Stores by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,757 shares of the company's stock worth $1,093,000 after purchasing an additional 453 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.63% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mike Spanos purchased 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $396.76 per share, for a total transaction of $198,380.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,097 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,765.72. This trade represents a 19.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 450 shares of the company's 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 sale, the insider now owns 2,247 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $959,761.11. The trade was a 16.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on CASY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Casey's General Stores from $451.00 to $454.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Gordon Haskett raised Casey's General Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Casey's General Stores from $460.00 to $470.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Casey's General Stores from $403.00 to $428.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $450.00 target price (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Casey's General Stores in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Casey's General Stores currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $424.00.

Casey's General Stores Trading Down 3.6 %

NASDAQ CASY traded down $14.95 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $405.59. 481,918 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 270,847. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.26, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.88. Casey's General Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $288.11 and a 1-year high of $445.17. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $410.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $396.45.

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

Casey's General Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. Casey's General Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 13.94%.

Casey's General Stores Company Profile

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.