Narwhal Capital Management Trims Stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)

Narwhal Capital Management decreased its holdings in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 28.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,329 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 10,350 shares during the period. Narwhal Capital Management's holdings in Target were worth $2,748,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nicholas Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Target by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $7,544,000 after purchasing an additional 9,485 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 144.9% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $31,699,000 after buying an additional 138,751 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth $6,459,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 3,231 shares during the period. Finally, Viking Fund Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 20.0% in the 1st quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC now owns 60,000 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $6,262,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company's 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 in the company, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Target Stock Down 0.8%

TGT stock traded down $0.82 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $96.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,344,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,193,335. The firm's 50-day moving average is $95.82 and its 200-day moving average is $113.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $87.35 and a 12 month high of $167.40. The company has a market cap of $43.94 billion, a PE ratio of 10.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 25.59%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. Target's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. Roth Mkm restated a "neutral" rating and set a $122.00 target price (down from $131.00) on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Target from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Target from $160.00 to $112.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.