Target Corporation $TGT Stake Reduced by Ethic Inc.

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. has reduced its holdings in Target Corporation by 18.2%, bringing its total shares to 34,948, valued at approximately $3.65 million.
• Target has recently missed earnings estimates, reporting $1.30 EPS against an expected $1.65, alongside a revenue decrease of 2.8% compared to the previous year.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $1.12 per share, representing a 4.3% dividend yield, payable on September 1st.

Ethic Inc. lowered its position in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 18.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,948 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 7,766 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Target were worth $3,650,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 951.4% in the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 389 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT traded down $6.6230 on Wednesday, hitting $98.7370. The company's stock had a trading volume of 33,131,731 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,081,358. The company has a market capitalization of $44.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $87.35 and a 12 month high of $167.40. The stock's 50-day moving average is $102.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $104.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 20th. The retailer reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $24.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.84 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 25.59%. The company's revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.57 earnings per share. Target has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.000-9.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Target's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on TGT. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $93.00 price objective (down previously from $105.00) on shares of Target in a research note on Friday, August 15th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Target from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Target from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Target from $112.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Target from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $114.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $4,328,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 246,453 shares in the company, valued at $23,703,849.54. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Target 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.