Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Increases Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 273,779 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 4,500 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.06% of Target worth $37,009,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TGT. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth $757,892,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $297,122,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Target by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,930,569 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,964,565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,306,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors bought a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $150,046,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

TGT stock traded up $0.07 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $96.44. The stock had a trading volume of 1,111,269 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,692,207. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company's 50-day moving average price is $104.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $127.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.23, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $87.35 and a twelve month high of $167.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. As a group, research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on TGT. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. DA Davidson cut their target price on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Truist Financial cut their target price on Target from $124.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on Target from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $132.37.

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.