UMB Bank n.a. Cuts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

UMB Bank n.a. lessened its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 18.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,042 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 4,641 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a.'s holdings in Target were worth $2,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Target by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 264 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America cut shares of Target from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $105.00 in a research note 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 on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Cfra Research lowered shares of Target from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Target from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $97.00 to $82.00 in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $122.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Target has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $116.70.

Target Stock Up 4.1%

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $97.33 on Monday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $44.22 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. The firm's 50-day moving average is $95.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.08. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $87.35 and a 1 year high of $167.40.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.35). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.60%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. Target's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.23%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, 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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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.

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