Dollar General Corp
- Telsey Advisory Group analyst Joseph Feldman maintained a Market Perform rating, while raising the price target from $130 to $140.
- Guggenheim Securities analyst John Heinbockel reiterated a Buy rating, while cutting the price target from $165 to $160.
- BofA Securities analyst Robert Ohmes maintained a Buy rating and price target of $175.
"Traffic increased 2.6% and average ticket increased 1.7%, with higher average unit retails partly offset by lower units per transaction," Feldman wrote. Despite the beat, Dollar General guided to first-quarter comp of low-2%, versus expectations of 2.5%, and to 2026 earnings of $7.10-$7.35 per share, versus consensus of $7.25 per share, he further stated.
Guggenheim Securities: Dollar General's discretionary comps rose by an impressive 6.1%. That's the strongest since the first quarter of 2021, Heinbockel said. The company enjoyed improved merchandising of seasonal and home products, he added.
Despite a significant fourth-quarter earnings beat, Dollar General announced conservative guidance for 2026, the analyst stated. Investors had widely expected the company to guide to earnings "well above the $7.25 Street consensus," he further wrote.
BofA Securities: Dollar General's comps grew 4.3%, with growth across categories, Ohmes said. The company generated gross margin expansion of 105 basis points (bps) year-on-year, he added.
Delivery contributed 80 bps to comps in the fourth, with more than 80% of orders being delivered in under an hour, the analyst stated. "Comps in 2026 should be supported by the introduction of a new store format, 15+ new brands in non-consumables, scaling delivery options, trade-in from & retention of middle/higher income customers, SKU rationalization, and building on the closeout buying strategy," he further wrote.
DG Price Action: Shares of Dollar General had declined by 0.40% to $135.41 at the time of publication on Friday.
