Pzena Investment Management LLC Buys 1,528,450 Shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) by 14.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,767,336 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,528,450 shares during the period. Dollar General makes up about 3.1% of Pzena Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned approximately 5.35% of Dollar General worth $892,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DG. ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 8,426.1% during the fourth quarter. ACR Alpine Capital Research LLC now owns 4,041,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,424,000 after purchasing an additional 3,994,070 shares in the last quarter. Baupost Group LLC MA acquired a new position in shares of Dollar General during the third quarter worth approximately $194,832,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 8.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 9,958,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,208,000 after purchasing an additional 759,869 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Dollar General during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,899,000. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Dollar General by 952.4% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 659,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,028,000 after purchasing an additional 597,133 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Dollar General from $73.00 to $69.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $110.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley cut 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 report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Dollar General from $108.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Gordon Haskett lowered shares of Dollar General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Dollar General currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.09.

Insider Transactions at Dollar General

In related news, Director Michael M. Calbert sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.27, for a total value of $451,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 120,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,056,636.94. This trade represents a 4.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Emily C. Taylor sold 4,740 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were 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 directly owns 15,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,206,128. This trade represents a 23.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Dollar General Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of DG stock opened at $82.99 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $73.48 and a 200-day moving average of $79.03. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $66.43 and a 12-month high of $168.07. The company has a market capitalization of $18.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.44.

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.