GOODLETTSVILLE, Tenn. — Dollar General Corp. today reported fiscal second-quarter profit of $787.6 million.

The company said it had profit of $3.12 per share.

The results surpassed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 21 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $2.44 per share.

The discount retailer posted revenue of $8.68 billion in the period, which also beat Street forecasts. Twenty analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $8.33 billion.

Dollar General shares have risen 31% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has increased nearly 8%. The stock has risen 47% in the past 12 months.