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Last Update: 11-Dec-12 08:40 ET
Dollar General shares fall 2% following in line revenues
Dollar General (DG $45.57 -1.00) reported third quarter earnings of $0.63 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Capital IQ consensus of $0.60, while revenues rose 10.3% year/year to $3.96 billion versus the $3.96 bln consensus; comps +4%. The company issued guidance for fiscal year 2013 with raised EPS to $2.82-2.85, excluding non-recurring items, from $2.77-2.85 versus the $2.85 consensus and sees FY13 revenues of +8.0-8.5% YoY (from +8-9% YoY) to $15.99-16.07 billion versus the $16.12 billion consensus. Same-store sales, based on a comparable 52-week period, are now expected to increase 4.5 to 5.0% (up from +4-5%). For the year, operating profit, excluding expenses resulting from secondary offerings of the Company's stock, is expected to be between $1.630 billion and $1.645 billion. For Q4, the company expects comparable store sales to increase by 3 to 4 percent. Gross profit, as a percentage of sales, for the fourth quarter is expected to be flat or modestly below the comparable 2011 period, resulting in a modest decline in the gross profit rate for the full year. "Although our performance over the Thanksgiving weekend and start of the holiday season has been encouraging, we continue to be cautious for the remainder of the year. We are facing a significant same-store sales comparison from our 2011 fourth quarter, which included very strong January sales, growing near-term pressures that are impacting our customers' confidence and spending, and a challenging competitive environment." The company plans to share its full year 2013 financial outlook when it reports Q4 results on March 25, 2013.
