by Evan Clark
Posted Tuesday March 22, 2011
From WWD.COM
Dollar General Corp., which boosted fourth-quarter profits by more than 150 percent, plans to continue to pick up market share this year as consumers hunt for bargains.
Fourth-quarter earnings increased to $222.5 million, or 64 cents a diluted share, from $87.2 million, or 26 cents, a year earlier. Sales for the quarter ended Jan. 28 rose 9.4 percent to $3.49 billion from $3.19 billion on a 3.8 percent rise in same-store sales.
Adjusted earnings of 65 cents a share topped analyst estimates by 6 cents.
The Goodlettsville, Tenn.-based chain, which already has 9,372 stores across 35 states, plans to open another 625 doors this year.
"We are off to a strong start in 2011," said Rick Dreiling, chairman and chief executive officer. "Even in a challenging macroeconomic environment, we expect to deliver strong financial performance in 2011, including top-line growth of 11 to 13 percent and same-store sales growth of 3 to 5 percent.”
This year, adjusted earnings are slated to rise to $2.20 to $2.30 a diluted share, ahead of the $2.14 analysts projected.
