Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Reduces Holdings in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its stake in Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 35.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,289 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,173 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Dollar General were worth $1,842,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Dollar General in the third quarter valued at $33,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the third quarter valued at about $57,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 37.7% in the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 200.4% in the third quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC now owns 850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Peoples Bank KS lifted its holdings in shares of Dollar General by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Peoples Bank KS now owns 1,435 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Dollar General Price Performance

Dollar General stock opened at $72.61 on Friday. Dollar General Co. has a 52-week low of $66.43 and a 52-week high of $168.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $74.41 and a 200-day moving average of $86.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.96, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Dollar General (NYSE:DG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 5th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.08). Dollar General had a return on equity of 18.85% and a net margin of 3.33%. The business had revenue of $10.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. Dollar General’s revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Dollar General Co. will post 5.75 EPS for the current year.

Dollar General Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 7th were issued a dividend of $0.59 per share. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 7th. Dollar General’s payout ratio is 38.88%.

Insider Activity at Dollar General

In other Dollar General news, Director Michael M. Calbert sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.27, for a total transaction of $451,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 120,322 shares in the company, valued at $9,056,636.94. This represents a 4.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Emily C. Taylor sold 4,740 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.44, for a total transaction of $367,065.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,206,128. The trade was a 23.33 % 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Dollar General from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Bank of America raised shares of Dollar General from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $94.00 to $83.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $97.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Dollar General has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.77.

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.