Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 1,651 Shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY)

Guggenheim Capital LLC reduced its stake in shares of Casey’s General Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:CASY) by 47.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,835 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,651 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC’s holdings in Casey’s General Stores were worth $727,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 1.7% in 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 period. 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 period. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% during 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 in the last quarter. Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Casey’s General Stores by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Laidlaw Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $421,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Casey’s General Stores by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $714,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 85.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. 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. Stephens raised shares of Casey’s General Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Casey’s General Stores in a research report on Friday, April 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Casey’s General Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $438.00 price target on Casey’s General Stores and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $430.33.

Casey’s General Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ CASY opened at $447.29 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 company has a fifty day moving average price of $422.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $412.77. Casey’s General Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $313.67 and a 1 year high of $468.88. The firm has a market cap of $16.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.17, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.74.

Casey’s General Stores (NASDAQ:CASY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $2.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.33 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Casey’s General Stores, Inc. will post 13.94 EPS 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Casey’s General Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Casey’s General Stores

In other news, insider Katrina S. Lindsey sold 250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,067,615.43. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mike Spanos purchased 256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $390.54 per share, for a total transaction of $99,978.24. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,356 shares in the company, valued at $1,310,652.24. This trade represents a 8.26 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

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.