Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Boosts Stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 754.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 446,344 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 394,124 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned 0.10% of Target worth $46,264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at $757,892,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at $297,122,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Target by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,968,037 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $536,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,275 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,532,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358,348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at $182,882,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

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 shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,703,849.54. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on TGT. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. 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 report on Tuesday, May 27th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Target from $97.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Target from $112.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $116.70.

Target Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE:TGT opened at $99.38 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $96.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.65. Target Corporation 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 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $45.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.35). Target had a return on equity of 25.59% and a net margin of 3.95%. The company had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.51%. Target's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.23%.

Target Company 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.

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