Securian Asset Management Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Target Corporation $TGT

Key Points

• Securian Asset Management cut its Target stake by 43.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,581 shares and ending with 12,356 shares valued at about $1.21 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on Target remains mixed: analysts have 11 Buy, 18 Hold, and 3 Sell ratings, with a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $118.64.
• Target reported quarterly EPS of $2.44, beating estimates, and declared a $1.14 quarterly dividend payable June 1, implying a 3.7% yield.

Securian Asset Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 43.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,356 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 9,581 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Target were worth $1,208,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in Target in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its position in shares of Target by 192.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 292 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Key Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Target by 77.4% in the 3rd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 346 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 168.9% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 355 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Target from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on Target from $63.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Target from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Target from $105.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, KeyCorp reissued a "sector weight" rating on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $118.64.

Target Trading Up 2.9%

TGT stock opened at $121.85 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $55.34 billion, a PE ratio of 14.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.94 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target Corporation has a one year low of $83.44 and a one year high of $133.10. The company's 50 day moving average price is $121.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.07.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The retailer reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $30.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.52 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.54% and a return on equity of 22.25%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.41 EPS. Target has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.300- EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be paid a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. Target's payout ratio is 56.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total transaction of $240,591.07. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,423,038.17. This represents a 14.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Target Company Profile

Target Corporation NYSE: TGT is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.

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