Short Interest in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) Decreases By 32.3%

Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) saw a large drop in short interest during the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 1,143,057 shares, a drop of 32.3% from the July 30th total of 1,688,551 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 285,907 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.0 days. Currently, 3.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In related news, Director Allison M. Wing sold 530 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $837.58, for a total value of $443,917.40. Following the sale, the director owned 3,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,547,918.36. This trade represents a 14.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Darren M. Rebelez sold 19,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $801.46, for a total transaction of $15,227,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 89,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $71,469,394.04. This trade represents a 17.56% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,243 shares of company stock worth $24,421,877. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Casey’s General Stores

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CASY. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Casey’s General Stores by 3.5% during the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 387 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 303 shares of the company’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Lincoln Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Lincoln Capital LLC now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 1,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $700,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 5,136 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,839,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on CASY shares. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price target on shares of Casey’s General Stores from $1,032.00 to $995.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Casey’s General Stores from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $950.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,069.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $990.00 target price on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Casey’s General Stores from $910.00 to $960.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $942.87.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

CASY opened at $766.91 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market cap of $28.38 billion, a PE ratio of 40.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $829.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $783.70. Casey’s General Stores has a fifty-two week low of $490.50 and a fifty-two week high of $927.85.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.31 by $1.06. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 18.73% and a net margin of 4.07%.The business had revenue of $4.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. Casey’s General Stores’s revenue was up 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Casey’s General Stores will post 21.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Casey’s General Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Investors of record on Saturday, August 1st were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This is an increase from Casey’s General Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 13.57%.

About Casey’s General Stores

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.