Gradient Investments LLC Buys 50,602 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Gradient Investments LLC grew its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 22.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 271,663 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 50,602 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Target worth $28,351,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of TGT. Nicholas Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Target by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,544,000 after acquiring an additional 9,485 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Target by 144.9% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer's stock worth $31,699,000 after buying an additional 138,751 shares in the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth $6,459,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Target by 29.0% during the fourth quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 14,354 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,940,000 after buying an additional 3,231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in Target by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,430,000 after buying an additional 3,590 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Target Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:TGT traded up $0.21 on Thursday, hitting $94.15. 2,438,642 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,027,135. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. The company's 50-day moving average price is $95.60 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.00. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $87.35 and a 52 week high of $167.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last posted its 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). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. Target's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. Target's payout ratio is presently 49.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Target from $112.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Target from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $97.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Target from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Target from $155.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Target from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.70.

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.