Dollar General (DG)
Consumer Staples · $30.2B market cap · SEC CIK 0000029534
ahead of 60% of the S&P 500 · #14 of 36 in Consumer Staples
Next reports on Dec 3, 2026, with analysts expecting $1.45 in earnings per share.
52-week range $95.11 to $158.23. 13% below its 52-week high and 44% above its low.
The case for DG
- Free cash flow of 7.9% of its market value a year: a lot of cash for the price.
- Earnings per share up 42.3%.
- Return on equity of 20%.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.16).
- Pays a modest 1.9% dividend.
The case against
- Expensive for its growth: 17.7× earnings, where 0% a year of growth plus a 1.9% dividend would justify about 11×.
- Net margin of 3.9% leaves very little room for error.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Consumer Staples companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. The score is where that blend places it in the S&P 500. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings and cash, against the growth you get | 53 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 55 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 52 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 74 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 68 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 36 Consumer Staples companies.
The financials
Revenue growth
Is the business growing? Slowly
| Last 12 months | +4.8% |
|---|---|
| Over 5 years | +4.8% a year |
| FY2025 revenue | $42.7B (+5%) |
Free cash flow
Is it generating real cash? Yes
| FY2025 free cash flow | $2.4B |
|---|---|
| Of revenue | 6% |
| Of profit | 158% |
Profit margins
Is profitability improving? Yes, improving
| Gross margin | 31% |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 6% |
| Net margin, FY24 → FY25 → now | 2.8% → 3.5% → 3.9% |
Debt vs. cash
Is the balance sheet healthy? Yes, the debt is manageable
| Cash | $1.1B |
|---|---|
| Long-term debt | $4.6B |
| Net debt | $3.4B |
| Years to repay | 1.3 yrs |
Valuation
Is the stock price reasonable? A bit pricey
| P/E | 17.7× |
|---|---|
| Fair P/E for its growth | 11× |
| P/FCF | 12.6× |
| Forward P/E | 16.1× |
| EV / EBITDA | 9.4× |
At 17.7× earnings it trades above the 11× that 0% a year of growth plus a 1.9% dividend would justify. At 12.6× free cash flow it trades close to that same mark.
The financials, five years deep
Pulled from Dollar General's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are worked out from the others.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | |||||
| Revenue | $42.7B | $40.6B | $38.7B | $37.8B | $34.2B |
| Change on the year | +5% | +5% | +2% | +11% | — |
| Free cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow | $2.4B | $1.7B | $692M | $424M | $1.8B |
| Of revenue | 6% | 4% | 2% | 1% | 5% |
| Profit margins | |||||
| Gross margin | 30.7% | 29.6% | 30.3% | 31.2% | 31.6% |
| Operating margin | 5.2% | 4.2% | 6.3% | 8.8% | 9.4% |
| Net margin | 3.5% | 2.8% | 4.3% | 6.4% | 7.0% |
| Debt vs. cash | |||||
| Cash | $1.1B | $933M | $537M | $382M | $345M |
| Long-term debt | $4.6B | $5.7B | $6.2B | $7.0B | $4.2B |
| Net cash (debt) | −$3.4B | −$4.8B | −$5.7B | −$6.6B | −$3.8B |
Filings
The text of this 10-K could not be read automatically. The original is linked below.