Casey’s Inside Same-Store Sales Slow to 3.2%
The convenience chain posted diluted earnings of $7.37 a share in the three months ended July 31, 2026, as fuel margin offset a 0.3% drop in same-store gallons.
Casey’s General Stores (CASY), one of the leading convenience store chains in the United States, reported inside same-store sales of 3.2% for the three months ended July 31, 2026, a step-down from 5.5% in the quarter ended April 30 and 4.0% in the quarter ended January 31.
The two-year stack for inside sales was 7.7%, versus 7.4% and 7.9% in the two prior quarters. Grocery and general merchandise same-store sales slowed to 2.7% from 5.1% and 4.0%. Prepared food and dispensed beverage same-store sales slowed to 4.8% from 6.6% and 4.3%.
The company said prepared food and dispensed beverage same-store sales were driven primarily by positive traffic, led by whole pizzas, while grocery and general merchandise same-store sales had excellent performance in nonalcoholic beverages. Inside margin was 42.2%, after 42.4% in the April quarter and 42.2% in the January quarter. The company said the margin was up approximately 30 basis points versus the same quarter a year ago, benefiting primarily from favorable mix shift and cost-of-goods management.
Total inside sales were $1.78 billion, up 5.6% from a year earlier. Inside gross profit was $749.8 million, up 6.3% from the prior year. Prepared food and dispensed beverage revenue was $492.6 million with a 59.3% margin. Grocery and general merchandise revenue was $1.28 billion with a 35.6% margin.
Fuel same-store gallons reversed to a 0.3% decline from a 1.5% increase in the April quarter and a 0.4% increase in the January quarter. Fuel margin expanded to 47.8 cents per gallon, excluding credit card fees, from 46.9 cents in the April quarter and 41.0 cents in the January quarter. Total fuel gallons sold were 934.2 million, up 2.5% from a year earlier due to the store count increase, slightly offset by the modest decrease in same-store gallons. Fuel gross profit was $446.9 million, up 19.6% versus the prior year, due to an increase in gallons sold as well as fuel margin.
Net income was $273.7 million, up 27.1% from the prior year. Diluted earnings were $7.37 a share, up 27.7%. EBITDA was $485.1 million, up 17.1%. Total revenue was $5.68 billion. Net income, diluted EPS, and EBITDA increased compared to the same period a year ago due to higher inside and fuel gross profit, partially offset by higher operating expenses.
Operating expenses were $754.1 million, up 8.0%. Operating 64 more stores than the prior year accounted for approximately 2% of the increase. Same-store credit card fees added approximately 1.5%. Same-store operating expenses excluding credit card fees rose 5.0%, versus 3.0% a year earlier. Same-store employee expense contributed approximately 1% of the increase, primarily due to increases in labor rates, while same-store labor hours were nearly flat. Insurance was responsible for approximately 1% of the increase.
Chairman, President and CEO Darren Rebelez said the company was off to a great start on its three-year strategic plan, highlighted by a nearly 28% increase in diluted EPS. He said guests were responding well to the company’s value proposition on high-quality prepared food, especially in whole pies, and that the fuel team’s capabilities helped navigate a volatile environment. He said the operations team delivered an exceptional guest experience during the busiest quarter of the year and that the company was running ahead of schedule on the integration of the Fikes acquisition.
Stores ended at 2,959 on July 31, 2026, after 9 new stores, 12 acquisitions, and 6 closures or divestitures from 2,944 at April 30. Available liquidity was approximately $1.4 billion, consisting of approximately $524 million in cash and cash equivalents and approximately $857 million in available borrowing capacity. The company repurchased approximately $45.6 million of shares, leaving about $973 million remaining under its existing authorization. The board approved a quarterly dividend of $0.65 a share, payable November 13, 2026.
The fiscal 2027 outlook previously disclosed remains unchanged. Casey’s expects inside same-store sales to increase 2% to 5% with an inside margin above 42%. It expects same-store fuel gallons sold to be negative 1% to positive 1%. Total operating expenses are expected to increase approximately 5% to 7%. The company expects EBITDA to increase 8% to 10%, which would imply 35% on a two-year stack basis at the midpoint of the range. It expects to open at least 120 stores in fiscal 2027 through a mix of M&A and new store construction. Net interest expense is expected to be approximately $95 million. Depreciation and amortization is expected to be approximately $490 million, and the purchase of property and equipment is expected to be approximately $800 million. The tax rate is expected to be approximately 24% to 26% for the year.