Legal & General Group Plc Cuts Position in Target Corporation $TGT

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its Target stake by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 175,515 shares and leaving it with 3.13 million shares worth about $306.4 million.
• Target reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.71 beating estimates of $1.47 and revenue of $25.44 billion topping expectations; revenue rose 6.7% year over year.
• Analysts remain mixed on the stock, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.93, while Target also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.14 per share, yielding 3.6%.

Legal & General Group Plc lessened its holdings in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,134,231 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 175,515 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.69% of Target worth $306,371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Target by 192.0% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 292 shares of the retailer's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Key Financial Inc raised its holdings in shares of Target by 77.4% in the 3rd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 346 shares of the retailer's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 168.9% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 355 shares of the retailer's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on TGT shares. Evercore set a $130.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Monday, May 18th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Target from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Target in a report on Friday, February 27th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $103.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Target from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $125.93.

Target Stock Down 0.4%

Target stock opened at $125.16 on Wednesday. Target Corporation has a 1-year low of $83.44 and a 1-year high of $133.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $122.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.24. Target had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.92%. The business had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.30 EPS. Target's revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be paid a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 13th. Target's payout ratio is currently 60.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total value of $240,591.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,143 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,423,038.17. The trade was a 14.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.