Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Stake Cut by Park National Corp OH

Park National Corp OH cut its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 7.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,738 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 3,103 shares during the period. Park National Corp OH's holdings in Target were worth $3,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nicholas Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,544,000 after purchasing an additional 9,485 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its position in Target by 144.9% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer's stock worth $31,699,000 after buying an additional 138,751 shares during the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in Target during the 4th quarter worth $6,459,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC raised its position in Target by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 14,354 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,940,000 after buying an additional 3,231 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in Target by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,430,000 after buying an additional 3,590 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Stock Down 0.9%

TGT traded down $0.90 on Friday, reaching $93.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,867,613 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,040,128. The stock has a market cap of $42.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.27. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $87.35 and a 1 year high of $167.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business's 50 day moving average is $96.26 and its 200 day moving average is $118.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released 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). The business had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $24.54 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.77%. Target's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. This trade represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $100.00 target price on Target in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Gordon Haskett cut Target from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Target from $135.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Target from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Roth Capital set a $122.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $116.68.

Target 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.