Independence Bank of Kentucky Cuts Position in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Independence Bank of Kentucky reduced its stake in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 9.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,526 shares of the company’s stock after selling 945 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $1,487,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Dollar General by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 815 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,215,000. Thrive Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 36.2% in the 1st quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,668 shares of the company’s stock worth $572,000 after buying an additional 975 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Dollar General by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,978 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,557,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC raised its stake in Dollar General by 3.6% during the first quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 36,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,737,000 after acquiring an additional 1,264 shares during the period. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on DG. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Dollar General in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Dollar General from $147.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Dollar General from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Argus increased their price target on Dollar General from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Dollar General from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 31st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Dollar General presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $148.23.

Dollar General Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:DG traded up $1.95 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $132.23. The stock had a trading volume of 9,278,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,456,465. The company’s 50 day moving average is $135.77 and its 200-day moving average is $139.89. Dollar General Co. has a 12-month low of $101.09 and a 12-month high of $173.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 1.22. The company has a market cap of $29.08 billion, a PE ratio of 19.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.45.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The company reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.89 billion. Dollar General had a return on equity of 22.80% and a net margin of 3.85%. Dollar General’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Dollar General Co. will post 7.21 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 23rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, July 9th. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.35%.

Insider Activity at Dollar General

In other Dollar General news, Director Ralph Santana sold 3,009 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.72, for a total value of $468,561.48. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $505,778.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Carman R. Wenkoff sold 5,909 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.23, for a total value of $958,617.07. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 28,579 shares in the company, valued at $4,636,371.17. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ralph Santana sold 3,009 shares of Dollar General stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.72, for a total transaction of $468,561.48. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $505,778.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by 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.