Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Stock Holdings Lessened by Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC

Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 13.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,388 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,142 shares during the quarter. Cary Street Partners Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,907,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 15,009.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,757,088 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $250,244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,745,459 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Target by 37,301.2% during the 3rd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,698,764 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $187,832,000 after buying an additional 1,694,222 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in Target by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,762,227 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $747,699,000 after buying an additional 1,415,900 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Target by 56.3% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,839,156 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $313,925,000 after buying an additional 1,022,437 shares during the period. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Target during the 3rd quarter valued at about $87,075,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock traded down $2.54 on Wednesday, reaching $158.44. The stock had a trading volume of 1,389,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,653,589. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $166.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $144.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The stock has a market cap of $73.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.14.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The business had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 earnings per share. Target’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.27%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

About Target

Target Corporation operates as a general merchandise retailer in the United States. The company offers apparel for women, men, boys, girls, toddlers, and infants and newborns, as well as jewelry, accessories, and shoes; and beauty and personal care, baby gear, cleaning, paper products, and pet supplies.