Foster Group Inc. Acquires 3,748 Shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Foster Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 108.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,200 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,748 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $2,853,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,046,830 shares of the company’s stock worth $393,305,000 after purchasing an additional 38,226 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 18.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 758,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $285,090,000 after acquiring an additional 119,350 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 655,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,335,000 after acquiring an additional 8,428 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 49.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 524,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $204,861,000 after buying an additional 174,586 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 0.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 273,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $102,694,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.63% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Casey’s General Stores

In other Casey’s General Stores news, Director Mike Spanos bought 500 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $396.76 per share, with a total value of $198,380.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,097 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,228,765.72. This trade represents a 19.25 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 450 shares of Casey’s General Stores stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,247 shares in the company, valued at $959,761.11. This trade represents a 16.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Casey’s General Stores Trading Down 1.0 %

CASY opened at $415.70 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.97, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.82. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $408.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $391.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.49. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $268.07 and a fifty-two week high of $439.68.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The company reported $4.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.29 by $0.56. The company 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%. Casey’s General Stores’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.24 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Casey’s General Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 13.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Gordon Haskett began coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Monday, November 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com downgraded Casey’s General Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Casey’s General Stores from $403.00 to $428.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $424.00.

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.