HighTower Advisors LLC Buys 91,260 Shares of Target Corporation $TGT

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors increased its Target stake by 18.4% in the second quarter, buying 91,260 shares for a total holding of 586,282 shares valued at approximately $76.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.73% of Target.
• Target reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $4.11 versus the $2.35 consensus and revenue of $26.54 billion, up 5.3% year over year. The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.16 per share, producing an annualized yield of about 2.8%.
• Target shares opened at $164.15, near their 52-week high of $170.75. Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $159.52, despite several firms raising targets to $182–$185.

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 18.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 586,282 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 91,260 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.13% of Target worth $76,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 13,417.6% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 91,340,014 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $11,929,919,000 after purchasing an additional 90,664,304 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Target during the 2nd quarter worth $5,054,604,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Target by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,772,533 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,692,265,000 after purchasing an additional 124,468 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Target by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,065,926 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,668,194,000 after purchasing an additional 561,898 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Target during the 2nd quarter valued at $831,466,000. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 926 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $151,410.26. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,005,613.66. This represents a 7.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 15,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.96, for a total value of $2,634,380.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 56,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,684,490.76. The trade was a 21.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $164.15 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $147.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.02. Target Corporation has a 1 year low of $83.44 and a 1 year high of $170.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.57 billion, a PE ratio of 17.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The retailer reported $4.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $1.76. Target had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The business had revenue of $26.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $26.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.900 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 12th. This is a positive change from Target's previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Target's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Freedom Capital downgraded Target from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Target from $129.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Target from $166.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on shares of Target from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $159.52.

Target Profile

Target Corporation NYSE: TGT is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.

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