Casey’s to add ‘at least’ 100 stores as Q4 earnings, sales tops estimates
Casey’s General Stores ended its fiscal year 2024 on a strong note as it continues to grow its footprint in new and existing markets.
The Iowa-based convenience store retailer posted a net profit for the three months ended April 30 of $87 million, or $2.34 a share, for the quarter ended April 30, up from $56.1 million, or $1.49 a share, in the year-ago period. Analysts had forecast earnings of $1.72 per share.
Total revenue increased 8.2% to $3.60 billion, ahead of the $3.47 billion analysts expected.
Inside same-store sales rose 5.6% to $1.26 billion from the year-ago quarter, driven by strong performance in hot sandwiches and dispensed beverage in the prepared food and dispensed beverage category, as well as non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages in the grocery and general merchandise category.
Fuel same-store gallons were up 0.9% compared to the prior year, with a fuel margin of 36.5 cents per gallon.
Casey’s built or acquired 154 stores during its recently completed fiscal year, for a total of 2,658 locations. It also entered its 17th state, Texas.
For its current fiscal year, the company expects to add at least 100 stores through a combination of new store construction and mergers and acquisitions.
“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," said Darren Rebelez, president and CEO. “The operations team did a tremendous job driving sales growth, while integrating new stores and reducing same-store labor hours for the eighth consecutive quarter.”
As of April 30, 2024, Casey’s had approximately $1.1 billion in available liquidity, consisting of approximately $206 million in cash and cash equivalents on hand and $900 million in undrawn borrowing capacity on existing lines of credit.
For fiscal year 2025, the company expects inside same-store sales to increase 3% to 5% and inside margin comparable to fiscal 2024.