For what it's worth.

• Position: FEATURE

A hedge fund tries to buy Family Dollar, but the retailer says the price isn't right and doesn't want to ring it up.

Family Dollar Stores Inc. touts low prices for its merchandise, but the business itself isn't cheap. After its largest shareholder, New York-based Trian Fund Management LP, bid roughly $7.5 billion for it--more than 25% higher than its market price at the time--the board, which has strong North Carolina ties, rejected the offer in March, saying it "substantially undervalues the Company." Directors also adopted a shareholder-rights plan, also known as a "poison pill," to fend off takeover attempts. Howard Levine, CEO and son of the company founder, is the company's largest individual shareholder, with a 7.5% stake. Family Dollar has benefitted from the heightened cost consciousness of U.S. consumers in hard times and plans to add 300 stores, and close 100, this fiscal year.

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Here's how Family Dollar stacks up against competitors:

FAMILY DOLLAR DOLLAR GENERAL Stores >6,800 >9,200 States 44 35 Market cap $6.4 billion $9.6 billion Employees 30,000 79,800 Quarterly revenue growth (yoy) 9.5% 10.1% Revenue (ttm) $8.0 billion $12.7 billion Gross margin (ttm) 35.7% 32.0% EBITDA (ttm) $761.5 million $1.4 billion Operating margin (ttm) 7.3% 9.0% Net income (ttm) $364.8 million $492.5 million Earnings per share (ttm) $2.72 $1.43 Price-earnings ratio (ttm) 18.6 19.6 Price-earnings-to-growth ratio 1.12 0 87 (five-year expected) Price-sales ratio (ttm) 0.79 0.75 DOLLAR TREE Walmart Stores 4,101 8,970 States 48 50 Market cap $6.5 billion $187.1 billion Employees na 2,000,000 Quarterly revenue growth (yoy) 10.7% 2.4% Revenue (ttm) $5.9 billion $421.9 billion Gross margin (ttm) 35.5% 25.3% EBITDA (ttm) $789.4 million $33.2 billion Operating margin (ttm) 10.7% 6.1% Net income (ttm) $397.3 million $15.4 billion Earnings per share (ttm) $3.10 $4.46 Price-earnings ratio (ttm) 16.8 11.8 Price-earnings-to-growth ratio 1.01 1.13 (five-year expected) Price-sales ratio (ttm) 1.1 0.44 ttm = trailing 12 months yoy = year over year na = not available THE FIRST 50...