Target (NYSE:TGT) CAO Sells $151,410.26 in Stock

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) CAO Matthew Liegel sold 926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $151,410.26. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,266 shares in the company, valued at $2,005,613.66. This represents a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Target Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE TGT opened at $163.85 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $74.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $83.44 and a 12 month high of $170.75. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $142.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $129.27.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The retailer reported $4.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $1.76. The company had revenue of $26.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.13 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on TGT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Target from $166.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Wolfe Research set a $169.00 price target on Target in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Target in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $154.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $159.52.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TGT. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in Target in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Company Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.