New York State Common Retirement Fund Raises Stock Holdings in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 333,049 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,655 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.15% of Dollar General worth $28,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Dollar General by 16.9% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 56,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,890,000 after buying an additional 8,235 shares during the last quarter. Graypoint LLC bought a new stake in Dollar General in the first quarter valued at $340,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in Dollar General by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 21,701 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,387,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in Dollar General by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 2,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 43,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,855,000 after purchasing an additional 2,269 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Dollar General

In other news, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of Dollar General stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total value of $174,186.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,887 shares in the company, valued at $250,187.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Warren F. Bryant bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $80.40 per share, with a total value of $40,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 41,030 shares in the company, valued at $3,298,812. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total value of $174,186.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,887 shares in the company, valued at $250,187.42. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Dollar General Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:DG opened at $81.76 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $17.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.70, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $85.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.53. Dollar General Co. has a 52 week low of $77.96 and a 52 week high of $168.07.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $10.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Dollar General Co. will post 5.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 8th were given a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, October 8th. Dollar General’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.65%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on DG. Telsey Advisory Group cut shares of Dollar General from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $168.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Dollar General from $150.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Dollar General from $130.00 to $97.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Dollar General from $169.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered Dollar General from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $170.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Dollar General currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $107.84.

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.