Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 25.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 70,740 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 14,547 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Target were worth $7,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC grew its stake in Target by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 264 shares of the retailer's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Activity at Target
In related 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 246,453 shares in the company, valued at $23,703,849.54. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Target Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE TGT traded down $0.46 during trading on Thursday, reaching $93.49. 4,759,471 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,035,860. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $95.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.00. The stock has a market cap of $42.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $87.35 and a 12-month high of $167.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.
Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.03 EPS. Target's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Target Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.79%. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 49.23%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several brokerages recently issued reports on TGT. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $112.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group set a $110.00 price objective on shares of Target and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Bank of America downgraded Target from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $145.00 to $105.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Target from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $116.70.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on TGT
Target Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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