Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

How does a regional convenience store chain, Casey's General Stores, Inc., manage to be both the 3rd largest convenience store chain and the 5th largest pizza chain in the United States? You might look at their fiscal year 2025 results-a record $546.5 million in net income on $15.941 billion in annual revenue-and wonder how they sustain that growth while expanding their footprint by a record 270 stores. This isn't just about selling gas and snacks; it's a masterclass in high-margin prepared food and disciplined expansion, so let's dig into the history, mission, and mechanics that make this company a standout investment story.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) History

You're looking for the foundational story behind Casey's General Stores, Inc., and honestly, it's a masterclass in growing a business by focusing on communities others overlooked. The direct takeaway is that Casey's evolved from a single converted service station in a small Iowa town into a nearly $16 billion annual revenue powerhouse by strategically prioritizing prepared food-especially pizza-and aggressive, targeted expansion, culminating in its largest-ever acquisition in fiscal year 2025.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. Founding Timeline

Year established

The business officially began in 1968 with the opening of the first convenience store, though the founder's involvement in the local retail and fuel business started nearly a decade earlier.

Original location

The first Casey's General Store was a converted three-bay gasoline station located in Boone, Iowa.

Founding team members

The company was founded by Donald F. Lamberti, who provided the capital. His friend, the gasoline salesman Kurvin C. Fish, persuaded Lamberti to buy the initial oil company assets, and the company name, Casey's, comes from Fish's initials.

Initial capital/funding

The initial capital for the 1967 purchase of the oil company that led to the first store involved Lamberti providing a $40,000 down payment on a total cost of $200,000, plus securing a $40,000 equipment loan from a local bank.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. Evolution Milestones

Casey's General Stores, Inc. Transformative Moments

The company's growth wasn't accidental; it came from a few defintely transformative strategic decisions that mapped to clear market opportunities.

The most important shift was realizing that prepared food could be a primary profit driver, not just an add-on. Introducing pizza in 1984 was the start of this, and by fiscal year 2025, the prepared food and dispensed beverage category drove a same-store sales margin of 58.3% in the fourth quarter.

• The Small-Town Focus: Early on, Casey's chose to build stores in towns with populations of 5,000 or less, which larger chains ignored. This strategy gave them a near-monopoly on convenience in many rural markets.
• The Pizza Strategy: Moving beyond just fuel and packaged goods to become the fifth-largest pizza chain in the U.S. is a major operational pivot. This high-margin food service business helped drive the company's fiscal 2025 Net Income to $546.5 million.
• The 2025 Acquisition Spree: The acquisition of Fikes Wholesale, which included 198 CEFCO stores, was a game-changer, costing $1.14 billion. Here's the quick math: this deal, plus organic growth, helped the store count reach 2,904 by the end of fiscal 2025, and Cash Flow from Operations hit nearly $1.1 billion, up 22% from the prior year.

What this estimate hides is the complexity of integrating nearly 200 new stores and expanding into new states like Texas, but the move signaled a clear intent to accelerate growth through M&A (Mergers and Acquisitions). You can dig deeper into who is driving this growth strategy in Exploring Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Ownership Structure

Casey's General Stores, Inc. is a publicly traded company on the Nasdaq (CASY), meaning its ownership is highly dispersed among institutional investors, mutual funds, and individual shareholders, with a very small percentage held by company insiders.

The company's governance structure is typical for a large-cap public retailer, with the majority of strategic control resting with its board and the large institutional funds that hold the bulk of the stock, which is a key factor to consider when Exploring Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Casey's General Stores, Inc.'s Current Status

Casey's General Stores, Inc. is a publicly traded corporation listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol CASY. This status requires compliance with strict Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations, ensuring a high degree of transparency for investors.

For the fiscal year 2025, the company reported a Net Income of $546.5 million and a diluted Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $14.64, reflecting strong operational performance and significant shareholder value creation. The public status means decision-making is heavily influenced by institutional shareholder interests and market performance.

Casey's General Stores, Inc.'s Ownership Breakdown

As of November 2025, the ownership structure of Casey's General Stores, Inc. is dominated by large institutional investors, a common characteristic of S&P MidCap 400 companies. This high institutional ownership-over four-fifths of the outstanding shares-signals confidence from professional money managers, but it also means the stock can be sensitive to large-scale buying and selling decisions by a few major funds. Honestly, that's where the real price action is.

Casey's General Stores, Inc.'s Leadership

The company is steered by a seasoned executive team with an average tenure that suggests stability and deep industry knowledge. The leadership is focused on executing its three-year strategic plan, which delivered a significant increase in EBITDA to $1.2 billion in fiscal year 2025.

Here's the quick math: The leadership team's focus on expansion led to the largest transaction in company history in FY 2025, adding 270 stores, including the Fikes Wholesale acquisition and its 198 CEFCO convenience stores.

The key executive leaders responsible for the daily operations and strategic direction as of late 2025 include:

• Darren Rebelez: President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
• Steve Bramlage: Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
• Ena Williams: Chief Operating Officer (COO)
• Tom Brennan: Chief Merchandising Officer
• Katrina Lindsey: Chief Legal Officer
• Chad Frazell: Chief Human Resources Officer

Darren Rebelez's total yearly compensation was reported at $10.68 million as of 2025, with a significant portion tied to performance bonuses, defintely linking his pay to the company's financial success. Their decisions directly impact the company's ability to meet its goal of 500 new units over the strategic plan period.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Mission and Values

Casey's General Stores, Inc.'s core purpose is clear: to make life better for its communities and guests every day, a commitment that balances customer service and employee respect with delivering a fair return for shareholders.

This dual focus is crucial, especially considering the company's significant scale, which saw it achieve a net income of over $546.5 million in fiscal year 2025, showing that doing good and doing well are not mutually exclusive.

Casey's General Stores, Inc.'s Core Purpose

The company's corporate purpose, the big 'why' behind its operations, is to make life better for communities and guests every day. Honestly, this is a powerful statement because it directly addresses the fact that many of their 2,904 stores, as of the end of fiscal 2025, operate in smaller towns often underserved by national chains. They are a community cornerstone.

This purpose is what drives their focus on prepared food-like being the fifth largest pizza chain in the U.S.-and their community giving, which, along with partners, resulted in $6 million in community donations in fiscal 2025 alone. That's a defintely concrete impact.

Official mission statement

The formal mission statement is a three-part covenant to all key stakeholders, mapping out the precise operational and cultural expectations. Here's the quick math on how they break down their commitment:

• Customer Focus: Provide quality products at competitive prices with courteous service in clean stores at convenient locations.
• Employee Focus: Provide a work environment where employees are treated with respect, dignity, and honesty, and where high performance is expected and rewarded.
• Shareowner Focus: Provide shareowners with a fair return on investment.

The emphasis on the employee environment is significant; it's how they support the 23,338 full-time and 25,934 part-time team members reported as of April 30, 2025. You can see the full breakdown of their foundational principles here: Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY).

Vision statement

Casey's General Stores, Inc. doesn't publish a single, formal vision statement, but their aggressive, publicly stated strategic plan serves as the clearest articulation of their future aspiration. This is the company's de facto vision for market expansion.

The vision is an implicit drive for market dominance in their operating areas, underpinned by financial targets. For instance, the company is targeting the addition of 500 new units through new builds and acquisitions over the three-year strategic plan, having already built or acquired 270 stores in fiscal 2025, including the major acquisition of 198 CEFCO stores. This growth is why their EBITDA hit $1.2 billion in FY 2025.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. slogan/tagline

The company's slogan, or tagline, is simple and community-focused: 'Here For Good.'

This ties directly into their core values, which they summarize using the acronym Casey's CARES. This is the cultural DNA that guides every one of their over 9 million Casey's Rewards members interactions:

• Commitment: Work hard to be the best and have a good time doing it.
• Authenticity: Be true to their roots by having high integrity and being low ego.
• Respect: Treat people the way they want to be treated.
• Evolving: Be driven to build a better future for themselves and the business.
• Service: Put service first and take pride in caring for guests, communities, and each other.

It's a clear playbook for their team, and it's how they keep same-store sales growth moving.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) How It Works

Casey's General Stores operates as a hybrid convenience store and quick-service restaurant, primarily serving smaller, rural, and suburban communities across the Midwestern and Southern United States. The business model centers on three key profit drivers: fuel, prepared food, and general merchandise, delivering essential goods and services in a single, convenient stop.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Product/Service Portfolio

The company's value creation is split across three segments, with Prepared Food and Dispensed Beverages driving high-margin inside sales. In fiscal year 2025, Casey's reported total annual revenue of approximately $15.9 billion, a 7.3% increase from the prior year, showing the strength of this diversified portfolio.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Operational Framework

The operational framework is built on a hub-and-spoke distribution system that allows Casey's to maintain a competitive cost structure and consistent product quality, especially for its prepared food offerings. This model is defintely a core part of their success in smaller markets.

• Integrated Supply Chain: Casey's operates three distribution centers (in Ankeny, IA; Terre Haute, IN; and Joplin, MO) that supply a majority of the grocery, general merchandise, and prepared food items to its stores.
• Self-Distribution of Fuel: The company owns and operates a tanker fleet to self-distribute roughly 60% of its fuel, giving it greater control over supply and reducing third-party logistics costs.
• Digital Engagement: The Casey's Rewards loyalty program, which has grown to over 9 million members as of fiscal year 2025, uses data to personalize promotions and drive repeat business, particularly in the high-margin prepared food category.
• Store Expansion: The company executed a record year of expansion in FY 2025, constructing or acquiring 270 stores, including the significant acquisition of 198 CEFCO convenience stores.

For more on the long-term strategic direction, you should look at the Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY).

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Strategic Advantages

Casey's market success stems from a few clear, structural advantages that are hard for national competitors to replicate, particularly in its core operating territory.

• Rural Footprint Dominance: Approximately two-thirds of the company's nearly 2,900 stores are located in towns with populations of 20,000 or fewer, where competition is significantly lower than in urban areas.
• High-Margin Prepared Food: The prepared food business, driven by its pizza and bakery items, generates a higher gross margin-Casey's inside gross margin is about 41.5%, which is above the industry average of 37%.
• Vertical Integration for Efficiency: Owning the distribution centers and fuel fleet provides a cost advantage and ensures product availability, which is crucial in smaller, less-served communities.
• Loyalty Program Effectiveness: The Casey's Rewards program's 55% active rate is well above the industry average of 40%, translating directly into higher customer retention and inside sales.

Here's the quick math: the focus on prepared food and loyalty helped drive the net income to $546.5 million in FY 2025, an 8.9% increase year-over-year.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) How It Makes Money

Casey's General Stores, Inc. makes its money through a classic high-volume, low-margin/low-volume, high-margin model, selling both fuel and a wide range of in-store products, particularly prepared food. The fuel business drives traffic to its 2,904 stores as of the end of fiscal year 2025, but the higher-margin inside sales-especially pizza and bakery items-are the true engine of profitability.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. Revenue Breakdown

For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2025, Casey's General Stores generated total revenue of over $15.94 billion. While fuel sales account for the majority of the top line, the inside sales segments are responsible for the vast majority of the company's gross profit, demonstrating the strategic importance of prepared food and general merchandise.

Here's the quick math: Inside Sales contributed about 34% of total revenue in FY 2025, equating to roughly $5.42 billion in sales, while the combined retail and wholesale fuel segments made up the other 66%. This split shows how sensitive the total revenue number is to oil price fluctuations, even though the company's profit stability comes from inside the store.

Business Economics

The core of the Casey's General Stores business model is its ability to convert high-frequency fuel customers into high-margin inside customers. They use a variable pricing strategy on fuel-managing the margin per gallon (cents per gallon, or CPG)-to remain competitive on the street, but they prioritize inside sales growth.

• Margin Focus: The goal is not high fuel revenue, but a healthy fuel margin, which stood at 37.6 cents per gallon in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025. This margin is highly volatile, but the company manages it to drive traffic.
• Prepared Food as a Profit Center: Prepared food and dispensed beverage items are the true profit drivers, with a gross profit margin averaging approximately 58% for the three fiscal years ended April 30, 2025. This is why same-store prepared food sales are a key metric.
• Loyalty and Digital: The Casey's Rewards program, with over 9 million members by the end of FY 2025, is a crucial tool for driving repeat, high-margin inside sales traffic. That's a massive, defintely engaged customer base.
• Cost Control: The company has demonstrated strong operational discipline, managing to reduce same-store labor hours for twelve consecutive quarters, which helps offset wage inflation and acquisition-related operating expense increases.

The strategic expansion, including the acquisition of 270 stores in fiscal 2025, is a direct move to scale this two-pronged economic engine into new markets like Texas.

Casey's General Stores, Inc. Financial Performance

Casey's General Stores delivered a record fiscal year in 2025, demonstrating the resilience of its convenience-store-plus-food model even amidst broader economic uncertainty. The key metrics show a business successfully executing its growth strategy.

• Total Profitability: The company achieved a record net income of $546.5 million in fiscal year 2025, an increase of 8.9% over the prior year. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also hit a record $1.2 billion, up 13.3%.
• Sales Momentum: Inside same-store sales grew by 2.6% for the full fiscal year 2025, significantly outperforming the industry and showing the strength of its hot sandwiches and bakery categories. Same-store fuel gallons sold were essentially flat at a 0.1% increase in the fourth quarter, a solid result given market volatility.
• Balance Sheet Health: Financial leverage (Debt-to-EBITDA ratio) stood at a strong 1.9x at the end of fiscal 2025. This low leverage gives them plenty of financial flexibility for future acquisitions and organic growth.
• Shareholder Returns: In June 2025, the company increased its quarterly dividend by 14% to $0.57 per share, marking the 26th consecutive annual increase, a clear signal of management's confidence in future cash flow.

To understand the ownership structure that benefits from these strong financials, you should read Exploring Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Market Position & Future Outlook

Casey's General Stores, Inc. is positioned as a dominant regional player, leveraging its unique rural footprint and industry-leading prepared food business to drive aggressive unit growth toward its target of 500 new stores by fiscal year 2026. This strategy, backed by record fiscal year 2025 results, suggests a strong trajectory, but the company must defintely navigate integration risks and a premium valuation in a consolidating market.

Competitive Landscape

The U.S. convenience store market remains highly fragmented, but Casey's General Stores has cemented its place as the 3rd largest convenience store chain by store count, a standing that puts it ahead of most traditional gasoline-focused retailers. Its core advantage is a specialized business model that thrives in small-town America, where competition for prepared food is minimal.

To be fair, the market share percentages are difficult to pin down precisely given the fragmentation, but they reflect the relative scale: 7-Eleven's parent, Alimentation Couche-Tard, holds the clear lead, while Casey's is a significant, growing force. You can dive into the shareholders' perspective on this growth in Exploring Casey's General Stores, Inc. (CASY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?.

Opportunities & Challenges

Casey's has set a clear path for growth, but it's not without headwinds. The strategic plan aims for 8% to 10% annual EBITDA growth through fiscal 2026, split evenly between existing business improvements and unit expansion.

Industry Position

Casey's is not just a c-store; it's a food service destination, which is a crucial distinction. The prepared food and dispensed beverage segment is a high-margin engine, and its success has made Casey's the 5th largest pizza chain in the United States.

• Financial Strength: The company reported record net income of $546.5 million and EBITDA of $1.2 billion for the full fiscal year 2025.
• Rural Moat: Approximately 71% of its stores are in towns with populations under 20,000, giving it a near-monopoly on convenience and prepared food in those areas.
• Capital Allocation: Casey's has a strong balance sheet, with a debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 1.9x at the end of FY2025, giving it ample capacity for future acquisitions to meet its store growth targets.
• Dividend Aristocrat Status: The company's commitment to shareholders is clear, having raised its quarterly dividend by 14% to $0.57 per share in FY2025, marking the 26th consecutive annual increase.

The focus on food and rural expansion is a smart defense against larger, urban-focused rivals. The next step is for management to execute the integration of the acquired CEFCO stores efficiently to realize the projected synergies.