Shares of Casey's General Stores (CASY) have been strong performers lately, with the stock up 7.3% over the past month. The stock hit a new 52-week high of $728.54 in the previous session. Casey's has gained 31.7% since the start of the year compared to the -3.6% gain for the Zacks Retail-Wholesale sector and the 29.2% return for the Zacks Retail - Convenience Stores industry.
What's Driving the Outperformance?
The stock has a great record of positive earnings surprises, having beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters. In its last earnings report on March 9, 2026, Casey's reported EPS of $3.49 versus consensus estimate of $3.01 while it missed the consensus revenue estimate by 2.65%.
For the current fiscal year, Casey's is expected to post earnings of $18.1 per share on $17.25 in revenues. This represents a 23.63% change in EPS on a 8.2% change in revenues. For the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $20.07 per share on $18.55 in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 10.89% and 7.54%, 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 has run ahead of itself.
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). The individual style scores for Value, Growth, Momentum and the combined VGM Score run from A through F. The idea behind the style scores is to help investors pick the most appropriate Zacks Rank stocks based on their individual investment style.
Casey's has a Value Score of D. The stock's Growth and Momentum Scores are B and B, respectively, giving the company a VGM Score of B.
In terms of its value breakdown, the stock currently trades at 40.2X current fiscal year EPS estimates, which is a premium to the peer industry average of 29.8X. On a trailing cash flow basis, the stock currently trades at 28.4X versus its peer group's average of 20.3X. Additionally, the stock has a PEG ratio of 2.37. 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 supersedes any trend on the style score front. Fortunately, Casey's currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) thanks to rising earnings estimates.
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 fits the bill. 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 Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).