An Iowa-based convenience store chain today reported a record fiscal year. Bill Walljasper, CFO of Casey’s General Stores, says diluted earnings were $4.62 per share in fiscal year 2015, up from $3.62 one year ago.
Walljasper discussed 4th-quarter and year-end earnings on a conference call and said strong fuel sales were one reason for the positive report.
“During the fourth quarter, we experienced a favorable fuel environment that caused the margin to rise above our annual goal to 16.9 cents per gallon, compared to 13.1 cents per gallon in the same period a year ago,” Walljasper said. Motorists who bought gas at Casey’s paid an average of $2.27 a gallon during the company’s fourth quarter. That compared to $3.39 a gallon one year ago.
Grocery and merchandise sales in Casey’s stores amounted to $436.6 million in the fourth quarter. “We experienced double-digit total sales growth in nearly every major area of this category, including cigarettes,” Walljasper said.
Casey’s also recorded record earnings in the fourth quarter in the category of prepared food and fountain drinks. “Total sales were up 19.5 percent to $194.7 million for the quarter,” Walljasper said. Casey’s gross profit for the fiscal year that ended April 30th was just over $1.4 billion.
The Ankeny-based company is listed 382nd on the most recent Fortune 500 list. That’s up from 389 last year.