Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Acquires Shares of 9,603 Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 9,603 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,298,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,930,569 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,964,565,000 after buying an additional 1,306,552 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 13.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,532,769,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358,348 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,332,317,000 after purchasing an additional 470,990 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $757,892,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Target by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,376,640 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $726,814,000 after purchasing an additional 754,883 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Target Stock Down 1.4%

Target stock traded down $1.41 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $99.67. 3,397,303 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,189,837. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $87.35 and a twelve month high of $167.40. The company has a market cap of $45.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a fifty day moving average of $99.56 and a 200-day moving average of $123.10.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Sell-side analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Target from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $97.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Monday. KGI Securities set a $132.00 price objective on Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Target from $120.00 to $95.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-two have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $128.57.

Target Company 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.