Short Interest in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Rises By 21.4%

Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,220,000 shares, a growth of 21.4% from the August 15th total of 6,770,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 3,810,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 3.8% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DG shares. Gordon Haskett cut shares of Dollar General from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, August 30th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Dollar General in a report on Monday, August 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Dollar General from $130.00 to $97.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 30th. Telsey Advisory Group downgraded Dollar General from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $168.00 to $103.00 in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Argus reduced their price target on Dollar General from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Dollar General currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $113.95.

Dollar General Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Dollar General stock traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $85.84. The company had a trading volume of 1,157,998 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,961,857. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Dollar General has a fifty-two week low of $77.96 and a fifty-two week high of $168.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $111.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $131.54. The firm has a market cap of $18.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.44.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 3.57%. The business had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. Dollar General’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Dollar General will post 5.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 8th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.35%.

Insider Activity

In other Dollar General news, Director Warren F. Bryant bought 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $80.40 per share, for a total transaction of $40,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 41,030 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,298,812. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Roderick J. West sold 2,510 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.25, for a total transaction of $208,957.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 9,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $762,819.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Warren F. Bryant purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price 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 $3,298,812. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Dollar General

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,061,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Dollar General in the second quarter worth $3,791,000. Heritage Oak Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter valued at $508,000. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter valued at $381,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 30.6% in the 2nd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.