Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Shares Sold by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,154 shares of the company’s stock after selling 124 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DG. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Dollar General in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Dollar General during the third quarter worth about $26,000. First Manhattan Co. lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 447.4% during the fourth quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 104 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Financial Freedom LLC purchased a new position in shares of Dollar General in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Dollar General in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Stock Down 0.4 %

DG stock opened at $144.47 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.15. Dollar General Co. has a 12 month low of $101.09 and a 12 month high of $222.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $133.78.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 14th. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $9.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. Dollar General had a return on equity of 26.13% and a net margin of 4.29%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Dollar General Co. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Carman R. Wenkoff sold 5,909 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.23, for a total value of $958,617.07. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 28,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,636,371.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Ralph Santana sold 3,009 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.72, for a total value of $468,561.48. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $505,778.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Carman R. Wenkoff sold 5,909 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.23, for a total value of $958,617.07. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 28,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,636,371.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Dollar General from $162.00 to $160.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Dollar General from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Barclays upgraded Dollar General from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $124.00 to $154.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Dollar General from $147.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Dollar General from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $153.08.

Dollar General 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.