NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Now that Dollar General Corp. executives have ended an internal investigation into accounting irregulariities, restated three years of financial results and agreed to settle related shareholder lawsuits, they're ready to move on.

The question is whether shareholders are ready to let them.

Shares of Dollar General stock plummeted 31 percent in value last April after the company announced the investigation, which included allegations of potential fraud.

After the markets closed Monday, Dollar General Corp. said its profits for fiscal 1998-2000 were overstated by about $100 million. And the discount retailer agreed to pay $162 million to settle related shareholder lawsuits.

But executives declined to give specifics about the 10-month investigation or to say whether any fraud was found, claiming it would be improper to do so until the Securities and Exchange Commission (news - web sites) concludes its investigation and a court decides whether to approve the settlement.

``There's some disappointment that there was not a more comprehensive disclosure about how this happened and who is responsible. The issues around corporate governance remain the most important going forward,'' said financial analyst Mark Miller of William Blair & Co.

However, he said, ``I'm not sure the stock at the end of the day is all that different than where it was. It does remain a good industry and the company continues to have significant opportunities to grow.''

Analysts also said it's good to have some uncertainties removed - including earnings to this point in the fiscal year - but they questioned whether the company could continue to have a return on equity as high as 20 percent.

For the 39 weeks ended Nov. 2, the company said net income was $110.1 million, or 33 cents a share, a 7.1 percent increase over the $102.8 million, or 31 cents per share, during the same period a year ago. Excluding the costs of the investigation, the profits would be $121.5 million, or 36 cents per share.

The company also submitted restated financial results for 1998-2000 to the SEC.

For 2000, Dollar General's net income was reduced from the previously reported $206 million, or 62 cents per share, to $70.6 million, or 21 cents a share. Excluding the expense for settling the shareholder lawsuits, the earnings would have been $169.6 million and 51 cents per share.

For 1999, profits were reduced from $219.4 million, or 65 cents per share, to $186.7 million, or 55 cents per share.

Restated profits for 1998 were $150.9 million, or 45 cents a share, compared with the $182 million, or 54 cents a share, previously reported.

The restatement was necessary to properly record items that had been incorrectly reported, the company said, including the cost of goods sold; selling, general and administrative expenses; interest expenses for restating operating leases; and resulting tax computation errors.

``The need to undertake this process was the biggest surprise and the most jolting disappointment of my 36 years with the company,'' said chief executive and chairman Cal Turner Jr. ``... Clearly the ship faltered while I was at the helm, but it has been righted and we are on course,'' he said.

The company said it will make a cash payment to shareholders and enhance corporate governance and internal control procedures as part of the lawsuit settlement agreement.

Dollar General executives declined to say what caused them to start the investigation, but it may have dated to concerns over accounting for leases in 1997 and 1999 for 400 stores, two distribution centers and its headquarters in the Nashville suburb of Goodlettsville.

The company began its investigation in April.

In September, Dollar General fired its auditor, Deloitte & Touche LLP, and hired PriceWaterhouseCoopers. But that company resigned citing an unnamed conflict of interest and in October, Ernst & Young was hired.

Dollar General also brought in outside legal counsel and another accounting firm, Arthur Andersen LLP, to help during the investigation.

The first Dollar General Store - which sold no item for more than $1 - opened as an experiment in 1955 in Springfield, Ky.

The company now owns and operates more than 5,550 stores in 27 states and had more than $4.5 billion in annual sales last year.

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