Dollar General stock shot up 80 cents Tuesday following a retirement announcement by the companys chief executive. Cal Turner Jr., whose father and grandfather started the company in Scottsville in 1939, announced Monday he was stepping down as CEO of the discount retailer.During Turners tenure, the company has grown from 761 stores to 5,891 stores in 27 states with distribution centers in seven states, including Kentucky. But Dollar Generals stock has dropped by more than 40 percent since the Securities and Exchange Commission began investigating possible accounting irregularities in April 2001. The Goodlettsville, Tenn.-based company agreed to pay $162 million to shareholder lawsuits after revealing in January that its profits for fiscal 1998-2000 were overstated by about $100 million. Turner reimbursed the company $6.8 million this summer for bonuses and stock options he received in 1999 and 2000, but would not have earned had the company properly stated its earnings. The overstatements were a result of incorrect accounting for some leases and liabilities and led the company to fire its auditor last September.Turner, 62, remains as chairman of the company and will serve on a special search committee for his replacement. Some Wall Street analysts have said they expect Don Shaffer, the companys president and chief operating officer since May 2001, to get the nod. Shaffer reportedly has taken on more responsibility within the company as Turner has stepped back. Turner did not return calls seeking comment.The hiring of a new CEO will mean the end of an era for Dollar General, which has been run by the Turner family since its founding by Turners father, Cal Turner Sr., and J.L. Turner, his grandfather. They founded the company as a dry goods wholesaler in 1939. In 1955, the first Dollar General store which sold no item for more than $1 opened in Springfield. Turner, who became CEO in 1977, didnt mention the companys accounting problems in a prepared statement announcing his retirement. Instead, he focused on the companys history and growth.Investors who stayed with the company profited greatly. A $1,000 investment when Turner became CEO would be worth more than $158,000 today. I firmly believe that Dollar General has achieved some of the best strategic results in retailing, said Turner in his statement. In large part, that was positioned by the affirming and visionary mentorship of my father.He said he intended to continue that tradition by serving as mentor and adviser to his successor. My original career motivation in 1965 was that my successor and the management team of this company would achieve impressive success beyond my tenure as CEO. A target date for the management transition has not been set. Dollar Generals stock finished up 6 percent at $14.08 a share Tuesday.