Nexus Investment Management ULC Raises Stock Position in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Nexus Investment Management ULC lifted its position in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 0.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 287,594 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,059 shares during the period. Dollar General accounts for about 3.8% of Nexus Investment Management ULC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Nexus Investment Management ULC’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $25,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DG. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Dollar General during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its holdings in Dollar General by 5,624.9% during the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 321,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,385,000 after buying an additional 316,005 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Dollar General by 81.4% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 5,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $428,000 after buying an additional 2,534 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in Dollar General by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 6,066 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 524 shares during the period. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Dollar General during the fourth quarter worth $502,000. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Dollar General

In other news, EVP Emily C. Taylor sold 809 shares of Dollar General stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.72, for a total transaction of $76,628.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 48,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,596,951.04. The trade was a 1.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Stock Performance

DG opened at $97.09 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $92.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.35 billion, a PE ratio of 15.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.27. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $66.43 and a 12-month high of $145.50.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last issued 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. Dollar General had a net margin of 3.33% and a return on equity of 18.85%. The firm had revenue of $10.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Dollar General Co. will post 5.75 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 8th were paid a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 8th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Dollar General’s payout ratio is currently 46.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DG. Gordon Haskett downgraded Dollar General from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Dollar General from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Dollar General from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (down previously from $90.00) on shares of Dollar General in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Dollar General from $95.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.96.

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.