Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys Shares of 605,374 Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Dollar General Co. (NYSE:DG) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 605,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,899,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DG. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Providence First Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Dollar General by 279.8% in the 4th quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Dollar General by 126.4% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Dollar General in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Dollar General

In related news, 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 value 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $451,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 120,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,056,636.94. This represents a 4.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. HSBC cut their price target on shares of Dollar General from $100.00 to $88.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Dollar General from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Dollar General from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of Dollar General from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.09.

Dollar General Price Performance

Shares of DG opened at $78.71 on Wednesday. Dollar General Co. has a twelve month low of $66.43 and a twelve month high of $168.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.54 and a 200-day moving average of $78.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.44.

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.