Brokerages Set Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) PT at $145.85

Dollar General Corporation (NYSE:DG) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirty research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fifteen have assigned a hold recommendation and fourteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $145.8148.

DG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Dollar General from $166.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Dollar General from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Dollar General from $112.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Dollar General from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $130.00 price objective (up from $123.00) on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Thursday, December 4th.

Dollar General Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of DG opened at $151.57 on Monday. Dollar General has a twelve month low of $72.52 and a twelve month high of $158.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.18, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $146.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.25.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The company reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.33. Dollar General had a return on equity of 18.59% and a net margin of 3.03%.The business had revenue of $10.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Dollar General will post 5.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Dollar General news, EVP Tracey N. Herrmann sold 12,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.07, for a total value of $1,573,755.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,870,666.36. The trade was a 28.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Bryan D. Wheeler sold 9,776 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.32, for a total value of $1,322,888.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 22,295 shares in the company, valued at $3,016,959.40. This trade represents a 30.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 58,673 shares of company stock valued at $7,713,389. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dollar General

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Dollar General in the fourth quarter valued at $363,299,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Dollar General by 416.4% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,525,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,759,000 after purchasing an additional 2,036,573 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 24,882.5% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,694,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,953,000 after purchasing an additional 1,687,533 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,270,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $832,513,000 after purchasing an additional 1,624,748 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Dollar General by 116.0% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,714,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,538,000 after purchasing an additional 1,458,093 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Dollar General

Dollar General Corporation is a U.S.-based variety and discount retailer operating a large network of small-format stores that serve primarily rural and suburban communities. The company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker DG and is headquartered in the Nashville/Goodlettsville, Tennessee area. Founded in 1939, Dollar General has grown from a regional operation into one of the nation’s prominent low-price retailers focused on convenience and value.

Dollar General’s stores offer a wide assortment of everyday consumables and household goods, including food and beverage items, cleaning supplies, health and beauty products, paper goods, apparel basics, seasonal merchandise and small household items.