Dollar General (NYSE:DG) Trading 3.7% Higher – Time to Buy?

Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)’s stock price was up 3.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $93.70 and last traded at $93.53. Approximately 5,484,108 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 49% from the average daily volume of 3,692,535 shares. The stock had previously closed at $90.20.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Dollar General from $79.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Dollar General from $94.00 to $83.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Gordon Haskett downgraded Dollar General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down from $90.00) on shares of Dollar General in a report on Monday, March 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Dollar General presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.26.

Dollar General Trading Up 4.7 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $20.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The company reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.17. Dollar General had a return on equity of 18.85% and a net margin of 3.33%. The business had revenue of $10.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.83 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Dollar General Co. will post 5.75 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 8th. Dollar General’s payout ratio is 46.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dollar General

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its holdings in Dollar General by 112.9% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 5,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $456,000 after buying an additional 2,861 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Dollar General by 14.3% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 9,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $812,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 387.7% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 32,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,783,000 after acquiring an additional 26,164 shares in the last quarter. PDT Partners LLC acquired a new position in Dollar General in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in Dollar General by 493.6% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 35,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,977,000 after purchasing an additional 29,273 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.