Vestcor Inc Lowers Stock Holdings in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Vestcor Inc trimmed its stake in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 53.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,497 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,720 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $593,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC boosted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,046,830 shares of the company’s stock valued at $393,305,000 after buying an additional 38,226 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 758,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $285,090,000 after buying an additional 119,350 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 655,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,335,000 after purchasing an additional 8,428 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $236,500,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 49.9% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 524,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,861,000 after purchasing an additional 174,586 shares during the period. 85.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mike Spanos purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,097 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,228,765.72. This represents a 19.25 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CASY. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $460.00 to $450.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $450.00 price target (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $423.09.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Up 2.8 %

NASDAQ CASY opened at $395.63 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $303.95 and a 52 week high of $445.17. The firm has a market cap of $14.69 billion, a PE ratio of 27.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $409.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $400.07.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.57. Casey’s General Stores had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 17.17%. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. Casey’s General Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casey’s General Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. Casey’s General Stores’s payout ratio is 13.94%.

Casey’s General Stores 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.