Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) Short Interest Up 10.1% in November

Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,210,000 shares, a growth of 10.1% from the October 31st total of 6,550,000 shares. Currently, 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 5,320,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Dollar General Price Performance

NYSE DG traded up $0.16 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $79.18. 3,458,625 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,226,144. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $79.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.60. The company has a market cap of $17.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.44. Dollar General has a 1-year low of $72.12 and a 1-year high of $168.07.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James reduced their price target on Dollar General from $150.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report 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 for the company in a report on Friday, August 30th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Dollar General from $155.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Dollar General from $97.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Dollar General from $154.00 to $102.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Dollar General currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $103.32.

Insider Activity at Dollar General

In other Dollar General news, EVP Steven R. Deckard sold 2,010 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.66, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 41.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Warren F. Bryant purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $80.40 per share, with a total value of $40,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 41,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,298,812. The trade was a 1.23 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dollar General

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Dollar General by 453.4% in the third quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 10,238,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $865,903,000 after acquiring an additional 8,388,735 shares during the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA bought a new position in shares of Dollar General in the third quarter valued at approximately $194,832,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Dollar General by 148.6% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,280,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,257,000 after acquiring an additional 765,206 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Dollar General by 8.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,958,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $842,208,000 after acquiring an additional 759,869 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in Dollar General by 319.6% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 925,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $122,324,000 after purchasing an additional 704,639 shares during the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.