Short Interest in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Increases By 7.7%

Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,550,000 shares, an increase of 7.7% from the October 15th total of 6,080,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,990,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Dollar General Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DG opened at $76.42 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.57. Dollar General has a 52 week low of $73.51 and a 52 week high of $168.07. The company has a market cap of $16.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 29th. The company reported $1.70 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 analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.13 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Dollar General will post 5.86 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were issued a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on DG. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Dollar General from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Monday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Dollar General from $118.00 to $95.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Dollar General from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $170.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $104.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other news, Director Warren F. Bryant purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $80.40 per share, with a total value of $40,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 41,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,298,812. This trade represents a 1.23 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a 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 that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.25, for a total value of $208,957.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,163 shares in the company, valued at $762,819.75. This represents a 21.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dollar General

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Dollar General by 3.5% in the first quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,390 shares of the company’s stock valued at $373,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Pullen Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Dollar General by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 30.6% during the 2nd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. boosted its position in Dollar General by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 2,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its holdings in Dollar General by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.