Dollar General (NYSE:DG) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Dollar General (NYSE:DG – Get Rating) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.02, Briefing.com reports. Dollar General had a return on equity of 38.43% and a net margin of 6.49%. The company had revenue of $10.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. Dollar General updated its FY 2023 guidance to $11.11-$11.32 EPS.

Dollar General Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE DG opened at $208.83 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $46.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $226.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $239.17. Dollar General has a 12 month low of $183.25 and a 12 month high of $262.20.

Dollar General Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This is an increase from Dollar General’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 10th. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. Dollar General’s payout ratio is presently 21.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “focus list” rating and set a $242.00 target price (down previously from $289.00) on shares of Dollar General in a report on Thursday, January 19th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Dollar General from $255.00 to $230.00 in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Dollar General from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 28th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Dollar General from $255.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Raymond James dropped their price target on Dollar General from $280.00 to $255.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $250.50.

Insider Transactions at Dollar General

In other news, Director Warren F. Bryant sold 1,951 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.93, for a total transaction of $475,907.43. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 38,269 shares in the company, valued at $9,334,957.17. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Dollar General

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Manhattan Co. boosted its holdings in Dollar General by 447.4% in the fourth quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in Dollar General in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 156.4% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 418 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 1st quarter worth approximately $212,000. 90.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Dollar General Company Profile

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Dollar General Corp. engages in the operation of merchandise stores. Its offerings include food, snacks, health and beauty aids, cleaning supplies, basic apparel, housewares, and seasonal items. It sells brands including Clorox, Energizer, Procter & Gamble, Hanes, Coca-Cola, Mars, Unilever, Nestle, Kimberly-Clark, Kellogg’s, General Mills, and PepsiCo The company was founded by J.