TCW Group Inc. Takes $1.85 Million Position in Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR)

Key Points

• TCW Group Inc. has acquired a new stake in Dollar Tree, Inc., buying 24,634 shares valued at approximately $1.85 million.
• Recently, analysts have issued mixed ratings for Dollar Tree; Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to "strong sell," while Citigroup upgraded it to "buy" with a raised price target of $103.00.
• Dollar Tree's Board of Directors announced a $2.50 billion stock repurchase plan, indicating confidence that the stock is undervalued.

TCW Group Inc. bought a new stake in Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ:DLTR - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 24,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,849,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Dollar Tree by 34,600.0% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 347 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in Dollar Tree during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. CX Institutional acquired a new position in Dollar Tree during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Dollar Tree during the 1st quarter worth $48,000. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Dollar Tree during the 4th quarter worth about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.40% of the company's stock.

Dollar Tree Stock Up 0.0%

NASDAQ DLTR traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $113.58. The company had a trading volume of 1,098,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,208,703. Dollar Tree, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $60.49 and a fifty-two week high of $115.99. The company has a market capitalization of $23.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm's 50 day moving average is $101.45 and its 200 day moving average is $84.03.

Dollar Tree (NASDAQ:DLTR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, June 4th. The company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. Dollar Tree had a positive return on equity of 19.36% and a negative net margin of 12.15%. The company's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.43 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Dollar Tree, Inc. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dollar Tree declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, July 9th that allows the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 11.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Richard L. Mcneely sold 21,026 shares of Dollar Tree stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.62, for a total value of $1,989,480.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 50,419 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,770,645.78. This trade represents a 29.43% 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 link. Company insiders own 6.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on DLTR shares. Cfra Research raised Dollar Tree to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Dollar Tree from a "strong-buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Dollar Tree from $80.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Citigroup raised Dollar Tree from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $103.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Dollar Tree from $72.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $97.74.

About Dollar Tree

Dollar Tree, Inc operates retail discount stores. The company operates in two segments, Dollar Tree and Family Dollar. The Dollar Tree segment offers merchandise at the fixed price of $ 1.25. It provides consumable merchandise, which includes everyday consumables, such as household paper and chemicals, food, candy, health, personal care products, and frozen and refrigerated food; variety merchandise comprising toys, durable housewares, gifts, stationery, party goods, greeting cards, softlines, arts and crafts supplies, and other items; and seasonal goods that include Christmas, Easter, Halloween, and Valentine's Day merchandise.