848,051 Shares in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) Purchased by Equity Investment Corp

Equity Investment Corp acquired a new position in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 848,051 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $88,503,000. Target accounts for about 2.0% of Equity Investment Corp's holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Equity Investment Corp owned 0.19% of Target at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in 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 last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,332,317,000 after acquiring an additional 470,990 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth $757,892,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Target by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,376,640 shares of the retailer's stock worth $726,814,000 after acquiring an additional 754,883 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of TGT traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $101.37. The stock had a trading volume of 3,847,228 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,284,739. The company has a market cap of $46.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.22. Target Corporation has a 52 week low of $87.35 and a 52 week high of $167.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $98.08 and a 200 day moving average of $110.18.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.35). Target had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 25.59%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.03 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.42%. Target's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on TGT shares. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Target from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Target from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Target from $155.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Target from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $97.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Target from $97.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider owned 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,703,849.54. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available 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.