Short Interest in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Increases By 8.5%

Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,860,000 shares, an increase of 8.5% from the March 31st total of 6,320,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,310,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Dollar General Stock Performance

Shares of DG opened at $137.58 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $150.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $136.38. Dollar General has a 12 month low of $101.09 and a 12 month high of $221.50.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $9.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. Dollar General had a net margin of 4.29% and a return on equity of 26.13%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Dollar General will post 7.28 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th were given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Dollar General from $158.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Dollar General from $130.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Dollar General in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Argus upped their price target on shares of Dollar General from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $153.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other Dollar General news, Director Ralph Santana sold 3,009 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.72, for a total transaction of $468,561.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,248 shares in the company, valued at $505,778.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Carman R. Wenkoff sold 5,909 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.23, for a total transaction of $958,617.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,579 shares in the company, valued at $4,636,371.17. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ralph Santana sold 3,009 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.72, for a total transaction of $468,561.48. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $505,778.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dollar General

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Comerica Bank bought a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 3rd quarter worth about $12,047,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 294.5% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,573,000 after acquiring an additional 14,127 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 4th quarter worth about $18,861,000. Professional Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Professional Advisory Services Inc. now owns 150,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,523,000 after acquiring an additional 16,899 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Live Oak Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,374,000. 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.