Target (NYSE:TGT) PT Lowered to $180.00 at Morgan Stanley

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its target price cut by Morgan Stanley from $190.00 to $180.00 in a research note published on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. TheStreet raised shares of Target from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Target from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $180.41.

Target Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:TGT opened at $145.23 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.85. The company has a market cap of $67.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Target has a 12 month low of $102.93 and a 12 month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.02). Target had a return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The firm had revenue of $24.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Target will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 49.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Target news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at $6,576,658.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its position in Target by 56.1% in the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 178 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. increased its stake in Target by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 10,773 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,909,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Target by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,339 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $760,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Target by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Godshalk Welsh Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,130 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,158,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Haverford Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Target by 0.3% during the first quarter. Haverford Trust Co now owns 27,472 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,868,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.