New York (HedgeCo.net) – In the latest S&P Capital IQ quarterly report, two of the most sold stocks were Dollar General (NYSE: DG) and Dollar Tree (Nasdaq: DLTR). The report breaks down stocks into three categories—decreases and sold out positions, decreases in existing positions, and sold out positions. Both of the two discount variety stores appeared in the decreases and sold out positions category and Dollar General also appeared on the list of sold out positions.

Looking at the general sentiment toward the two stocks, the short interest ratio for Dollar General is currently 1.4. The short interest ratio is simply the number of shares sold short divided by the average daily trading volume. A reading of 1.4 is considered low and bullish sentiment. Dollar Tree on the other hand has a short interest ratio of 6.3 which is leaning toward the bearish side.

Another indication of the sentiment toward the stocks are the collective analyst ratings for each. Once again Dollar General is viewed more optimistically with 18 “buy” ratings compared to only eight “hold” ratings and one “sell” rating. Dollar Tree has 11 “buy” ratings and 15 “hold” ratings. While hedge funds may view the two stocks equally and the general investing public may view Dollar General in a higher regard than Dollar Tree, but during the first quarter, Dollar Tree gained 15.3% and Dollar General gained 6.62%.

Rick Pendergraft
Research Analyst
HedgeCoVest