Croban Makes New $721,000 Investment in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)

Croban acquired a new stake in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 6,908 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $721,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Target by 6.3% during the 4th 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 during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,532,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358,348 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,332,317,000 after purchasing an additional 470,990 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $757,892,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Target by 16.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,376,640 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $726,814,000 after buying an additional 754,883 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of TGT traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $104.26. 3,863,821 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,283,549. The stock has a market cap of $47.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.22. The stock's 50-day moving average is $97.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.63. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $87.35 and a 12 month high of $167.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.35). The firm had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 25.59%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.03 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.30%. Target's payout ratio is 49.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Guggenheim reduced their target price on Target from $155.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Target from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler set a $94.00 target price on Target and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group set a $110.00 price objective on Target and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Target has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total value of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 246,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% 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.