MONTREAL _ Dollarama Inc. (TSX: DOL, Stock Forum) says its fourth-quarter profit rose about 21 per cent to $100.3 million _ above analyst estimates.
It also announced a hike to its quarterly dividend, which will rise by 12.5 per cent to nine cents per share, starting on May 7.
Dollarama's profit amounted to 76 cents per share, up from 59 cents per share or $83 million in last year's fourth quarter.
Analysts had estimated 71 cents per share of adjusted earnings and 75 cents per share on a fully reported basis.
Sales for the Montreal-based company rose to $669 million for the quarter ended Feb. 1, up 14.9 per cent from a year earlier, while sales for comparable locations were up 8.5 per cent.
The company says comparable-store growth was driven by a 3.6 per cent increase in the number of transactions and a 4.7 per cent increase in the average transaction value.
A year earlier, Dollarama's sales were hurt by bad weather in its core markets during the 2013 Christmas sales period.
Its shares closed Tuesday at $66.30, after hitting a record high of $66.62 earlier in the session.