HSBC Has Lowered Expectations for Dollar General (NYSE:DG) Stock Price

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) had its price objective decreased by HSBC from $100.00 to $88.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning. HSBC currently has a hold rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on DG. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Dollar General from $169.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Dollar General from $118.00 to $95.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Dollar General from $101.00 to $97.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on shares of Dollar General in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $104.00.

Dollar General Price Performance

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

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by ($0.09). Dollar General had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 20.62%. The business had revenue of $10.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.37 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.13 EPS. Dollar General’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Dollar General will post 5.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 8th. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.65%.

Insider Transactions at Dollar General

In related news, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of Dollar General stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total transaction of $174,186.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 2,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $250,187.42. The trade was a 41.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Warren F. Bryant bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $80.40 per share, for a total transaction of $40,200.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 41,030 shares in the company, valued at $3,298,812. This represents a 1.23 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Dollar General during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Dollar General in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Dollar General in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Studio Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Dollar General by 117.7% in the 2nd quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Dollar General in the 1st quarter valued at $45,000. 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.