New York State Teachers Retirement System Sells 29,699 Shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lowered its position in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 6.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 430,855 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 29,699 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.09% of Target worth $44,964,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of TGT. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC boosted its position in Target by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 264 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Target during the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $98.77 on Tuesday. 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 company has a market cap of $44.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.24. Target Corporation has a 12-month low of $87.35 and a 12-month high of $167.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.54%. Target's payout ratio is 49.23%.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider owned 246,453 shares in the company, valued at $23,703,849.54. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Target from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. KGI Securities set a $132.00 price objective on Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Target in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued an "equal weight" rating on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of Target from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. One research 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.

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