Congress Asset Management Co. Sells 44,135 Shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Congress Asset Management Co. lessened its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 13.9% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 273,175 shares of the company’s stock after selling 44,135 shares during the period. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $118,569,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $628,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 2.1% in the first quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 1,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $522,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $357,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,002 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

Casey’s General Stores stock opened at $444.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $447.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $424.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.48 billion, a PE ratio of 30.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.65. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $322.78 and a 1-year high of $474.97.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CASY. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. 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. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Stephens raised shares of Casey’s General Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $430.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $437.01, for a total transaction of $109,252.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,067,615.43. This trade represents a 9.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mike Spanos acquired 256 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $390.54 per share, for a total transaction of $99,978.24. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,356 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,310,652.24. This represents a 8.26% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.