State Street Corp Acquires 1,529,026 Shares of Target Corporation $TGT

State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,736,101 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,529,026 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 8.09% of Target worth $3,624,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 63.4% during the 2nd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 263 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 2,530.0% in the 2nd quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 263 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in Target during the second quarter worth $31,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Target in the first quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $93.68 on Wednesday. Target Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.44 and a 52 week high of $145.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $90.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.35. The company has a market cap of $42.42 billion, a PE ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 10.13 and a beta of 1.13.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $25.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.44 billion. Target had a return on equity of 22.74% and a net margin of 3.58%.Target’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share. Target has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.000-8.000 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th were paid a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 12th. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.34%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TGT. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Target from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. BTIG Research started coverage on Target in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Target from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Target from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Target from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $102.62.

Target Profile

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.