Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Shares Sold by Birch Capital Management LLC

Birch Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 90.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,967 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,999 shares during the period. Birch Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $149,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TD Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 5.6% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 175,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,158,000 after buying an additional 9,312 shares in the last quarter. Candriam S.C.A. raised its holdings in Dollar General by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 13,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,796,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Dollar General in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the second quarter valued at approximately $823,000. Finally, X Square Capital LLC lifted its position in Dollar General by 1.1% during the second quarter. X Square Capital LLC now owns 13,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,817,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Dollar General Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of DG traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $74.65. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,848,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,682,461. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.15. Dollar General Co. has a 12-month low of $72.12 and a 12-month high of $168.07. The stock has a market cap of $16.42 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.44. The company’s 50 day moving average is $77.14 and its 200 day moving average is $95.07.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $10.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.14 billion. Dollar General had a net margin of 3.33% and a return on equity of 18.85%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Dollar General Co. will post 5.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 7th. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on DG. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Dollar General from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Dollar General from $110.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on Dollar General from $103.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Dollar General from $122.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Dollar General from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other news, EVP Emily C. Taylor sold 4,740 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.44, for a total value of $367,065.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,206,128. The trade was a 23.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael M. Calbert sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.27, for a total value of $451,620.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 120,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,056,636.94. This represents a 4.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.