Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT)

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC recently invested approximately $3.75 million in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT), acquiring 35,893 shares during the first quarter.
• Analysts' ratings for Target now show a downgrade to "hold" by Cfra Research, with a consensus target price of $115.65 among various analysts.
• Target has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.12 per share, set to be paid on September 1st, representing a 4.2% yield.

Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 35,893 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,746,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Fiducient Advisors LLC lifted its position in Target by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Fiducient Advisors LLC now owns 1,778 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $240,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC lifted its position in Target by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 264 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC lifted its position in Target by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC now owns 28,668 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,875,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 5,471 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $740,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 10,369 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,402,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Target from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Target from $97.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Target from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $112.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Target from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $115.26.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT traded up $2.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $106.29. 6,547,244 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,937,121. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.64. Target Corporation has a 52-week low of $87.35 and a 52-week high of $167.40. The company has a market cap of $48.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 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 revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. Target's payout ratio is presently 49.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total value of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 246,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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.