Dollar General (NYSE:DG) Stock Price Down 1.8% Following Insider Selling

Shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) traded down 1.8% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $85.34 and last traded at $86.15. 4,657,384 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 23% from the average session volume of 3,793,190 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.70.

Specifically, EVP Emily C. Taylor sold 809 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.72, for a total transaction of $76,628.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 48,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,596,951.04. This represents a 1.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised Dollar General from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Monday. Barclays decreased their price objective on Dollar General from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 9th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Dollar General from $108.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (down previously from $90.00) on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Gordon Haskett cut Dollar General from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Dollar General presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.75.

Dollar General Trading Up 1.7 %

The company has a fifty day moving average of $80.00 and a 200-day moving average of $78.21. The company has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.41, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

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

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 8th will be given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 8th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dollar General

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. IMG Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Providence First Trust Co acquired a new position in Dollar General in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 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.