Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twenty-three brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have assigned a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $104.45.

Several analysts have recently commented on DG shares. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $97.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Daiwa America cut shares of Dollar General from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Dollar General from $101.00 to $97.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday.

Dollar General Price Performance

DG opened at $75.88 on Tuesday. Dollar General has a one year low of $73.51 and a one year high of $168.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.45.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). Dollar General had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 20.62%. The company had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.13 earnings per share. Dollar General’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Dollar General will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were paid a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. Dollar General’s payout ratio is currently 36.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other news, Director Warren F. Bryant acquired 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $80.40 per share, with a total value of $40,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 41,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,298,812. The trade was a 1.23 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roderick J. West sold 2,510 shares of Dollar General stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.25, for a total transaction of $208,957.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $762,819.75. This trade represents a 21.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Studio Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 117.7% during the 2nd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Company Profile

Dollar General Corporation, a discount retailer, provides various merchandise products in the southern, southwestern, midwestern, and eastern United States. It offers consumable products, including paper and cleaning products, such as paper towels, bath tissues, paper dinnerware, trash and storage bags, disinfectants, and laundry products; packaged food comprising cereals, pasta, canned soups, fruits and vegetables, condiments, spices, sugar, and flour; and perishables that include milk, eggs, bread, refrigerated and frozen food, beer, and wine.