Kentucky Retirement Systems Lowers Holdings in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its holdings in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,319 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,235 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Dollar General were worth $1,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of DG. Capital International Investors raised its position in Dollar General by 11.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 20,790,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,244,491,000 after purchasing an additional 2,113,485 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Dollar General by 11.2% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,217,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,155,141,000 after buying an additional 2,031,593 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Dollar General by 148.6% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,280,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,257,000 after acquiring an additional 765,206 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Dollar General by 319.6% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 925,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $122,324,000 after acquiring an additional 704,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Interval Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $87,081,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other news, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total transaction of $174,186.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,887 shares in the company, valued at $250,187.42. This trade represents a 41.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Roderick J. West sold 2,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 9,163 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $762,819.75. The trade was a 21.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Stock Performance

Shares of DG opened at $77.09 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.57. Dollar General Co. has a 52-week low of $73.51 and a 52-week high of $168.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $16.95 billion, a PE ratio of 11.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.45.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.79 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.37 billion. Dollar General had a return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 3.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Dollar General Co. will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 8th. Dollar General’s payout ratio is currently 36.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on DG. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Dollar General from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Dollar General from $130.00 to $90.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Barclays cut their target price on Dollar General from $154.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group cut shares of Dollar General from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $168.00 to $103.00 in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Daiwa America cut Dollar General from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.00.

About Dollar General

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.