Virtu Financial LLC Raises Stake in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Virtu Financial LLC raised its stake in Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 381.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,862 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,852 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $1,926,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $778,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,002 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,063 shares of the company’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,802 shares of the company’s stock valued at $714,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on CASY. Gordon Haskett raised Casey’s General Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. 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 note on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 price target on Casey’s General Stores and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. StockNews.com lowered Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Casey’s General Stores from $460.00 to $450.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $423.09.

Casey’s General Stores Price Performance

CASY stock opened at $404.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.87. The business’s 50-day moving average is $410.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $401.12. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $306.45 and a 1 year high of $445.17.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.57. Casey’s General Stores had a return on equity of 17.17% and a net margin of 3.57%. The business had revenue of $3.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.33 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% on a year-over-year basis. 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 firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Casey’s General Stores’s payout ratio is currently 13.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mike Spanos purchased 256 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $390.54 per share, for a total transaction of $99,978.24. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,356 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,310,652.24. This represents a 8.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.