Sales miss but profits top estimates at Dollar General

Dollar General Corp. missed Wall Street projections for sales in its third quarter, but the chain came out on top again in its earnings. It also named a permanent CFO.



The discounter on Thursday posted its fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit earnings growth. It was the third consecutive quarter that Dollar General beat the Street's projection for earnings.



The retailer reported a better-than-expected profit of $253.3 million, or 86 cents a share, for the quarter ended Oct. 30, up from $236.3 million, or 78 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding special items, per-share earnings were 88 cents a share.



Net sales grew 7.3% to $5.07 billion, less than expected. Same-store sales rose 2.3%.



Dollar General CEO Todd Vasos said the company will continue to implement cost control measures to boost its bottom line.



"As we plan for 2016, we are adopting a zero-based budgeting process to reinforce our commitment as a low-cost operator," he stated.



The retailer narrowed its full-year earnings forecast, and said it now foresees full-year earnings in the range of $3.88 to $3.93 per share. Its prior outlook was for $3.85 to $3.95 per share.



In other news, Dollar General named John Garratt as its permanent CFO, effective December 2, 2015. He has served as the chain’s interim CFO since June 2015, and previously served as its senior VP of finance and strategy.



Dollar General on Thursday also announced a $1 billion stock buyback, boosting its program to $1.2 billion total.



Dollar General operates 12,396 stores in 43 states as of October 30, 2015.