Metis Global Partners LLC Purchases 135 Shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Metis Global Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,042 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $596,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Dollar General by 85.7% in the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 58,107 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,683,000 after buying an additional 26,813 shares in the last quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,650,000. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 231.6% during the third quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 37,462 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,168,000 after purchasing an additional 26,165 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its stake in Dollar General by 278.1% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 64,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,086,000 after purchasing an additional 47,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kiltearn Partners LLP bought a new stake in Dollar General during the second quarter valued at approximately $9,587,000. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on DG shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Dollar General from $110.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Dollar General in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Dollar General in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Dollar General from $155.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Dollar General from $145.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Dollar General currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total value of $174,186.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $250,187.42. This represents a 41.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Price Performance

DG opened at $75.88 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $81.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.99. Dollar General Co. has a 52-week low of $73.51 and a 52-week high of $168.07.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $10.37 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Dollar General Co. will post 5.86 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

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

Dollar General 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.