Have you been paying attention to shares of Casey's General Stores (CASY)? Shares have been on the move with the stock up 8.1% over the past month. The stock hit a new 52-week high of $592.18 in the previous session. Casey's has gained 6.1% since the start of the year compared to the 11.3% move for the Zacks Retail-Wholesale sector and the 23.1% return for the Zacks Retail - Convenience Stores industry.
What's Driving the Outperformance?
The stock has an impressive record of positive earnings surprises, as it hasn't missed our earnings consensus estimate in any of the last four quarters. In its last earnings report on December 9, 2025, Casey's reported EPS of $5.53 versus consensus estimate of $4.92 while it missed the consensus revenue estimate by 1.03%.
For the current fiscal year, Casey's is expected to post earnings of $17.28 per share on $17.19 in revenues. This represents a 18.03% change in EPS on a 7.84% change in revenues. For the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $18.59 per share on $18.17 in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 7.58% and 5.67%, respectively.
Valuation Metrics
Casey's may be at a 52-week high right now, but what might the future hold for the stock? A key aspect of this question is taking a look at valuation metrics in order to determine if the company is due for a pullback from this level.
On this front, we can look at the Zacks Style Scores, as they provide investors with an additional way to sort through stocks (beyond looking at the Zacks Rank of a security). These styles are represented by grades running from A to F in the categories of Value, Growth, and Momentum, while there is a combined VGM Score as well. Investors should consider the style scores a valuable tool that can help you to pick the most appropriate Zacks Rank stocks based on their individual investment style.
Casey's has a Value Score of C. The stock's Growth and Momentum Scores are A and D, respectively, giving the company a VGM Score of A.
In terms of its value breakdown, the stock currently trades at 33.9X current fiscal year EPS estimates, which is a premium to the peer industry average of 25.8X. On a trailing cash flow basis, the stock currently trades at 22.9X versus its peer group's average of 17.2X. This isn't enough to put the company in the top echelon of all stocks we cover from a value perspective.
Zacks Rank
We also need to look at the Zacks Rank for the stock, as this is even more important than the company's VGM Score. Fortunately, Casey's currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) thanks to a solid earnings estimate revision trend.
Since we recommend that investors select stocks carrying Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and Style Scores of A or B, it looks as if Casey's meets the list of requirements. Thus, it seems as though Casey's shares could have a bit more room to run in the near term.
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Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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