Why Casey's General Stores Shares Are Surging Premarket Wednesday

Casey’s General Stores, Inc. CASY shares are trading higher after the company reported fourth quarter and FY24 results.

Sales of $3.60 billion exceeded the street view of $3.48 billion. EPS of $2.34 beat the consensus of $1.72.

Inside same-store sales rose 5.6% and 12.4% over a two-year period, with an inside margin of 41.2%, aided by strong performance in hot sandwiches and dispensed beverages within the prepared food and dispensed beverage category, alongside non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages in the grocery and general merchandise category.

The company’s inside gross profit increased by 16.2% Y/Y to $517.6 million. Fuel same-store gallons grew 0.9% Y/Y, with a fuel margin of 36.5 cents per gallon. Total fuel gross profit increased by 15.4% Y/Y to $253.6 million in the quarter.

As of April-end, the company had around $1.1 billion in available liquidity, consisting of about $206 million in cash and cash equivalents on hand and $900 million in undrawn borrowing capacity on existing lines of credit.

During the quarter, Casey’s General Stores repurchased approximately $15 million worth of shares for a total of $105 million for the year. The company has around $295 million remaining under its existing share repurchase authorization.

Dividend: The Board of Directors increased the quarterly dividend by 16% to $0.50 per share. The dividend will be payable on August 15 to shareholders of record on August 1.

FY25 Outlook: The company expects EBITDA to increase by at least 8%. The company anticipates a 3% to 5% increase in inside same-store sales, with an inside margin similar to that of fiscal 2024.

Casey’s General Stores targets same-store fuel gallons sold between negative 1% and positive 1%.

The company plans to increase its store count by at least 100 in FY25 through a combination of mergers, acquisitions, and new store construction.

Darren Rebelez, President and CEO, said, “Casey’s started its three-year strategic plan with a record fiscal year, exceeding $1 billion in EBITDA for the first time in the company’s history.”

“Inside same-store sales were outstanding, up 4.4%, or 11.2% on a two-year stack basis, led by strong performance in pizza and bakery as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.”

Casey’s also announced the appointment of Maria Castañón Moats to its Board of Directors, effective as of July 1, 2024, following her retirement from PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP.

Investors can gain exposure to the stock via AdvisorShares Restaurant ETF EATZ and Invesco Dorsey Wright Consumer Staples Momentum ETF PSL.

Price Action: CASY shares are up 5.95% at $345.96 premarket at the last check Wednesday.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.