Welch Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Target Corporation $TGT

Key Points

• Welch Group LLC increased its stake in Target Corporation by 14.4%, now owning 61,631 shares valued at approximately $6.08 million.
• Target reported $2.05 EPS for the last quarter, slightly exceeding analysts’ expectations, and anticipates an FY 2025 EPS between $7.00 and $9.00.
• The company will increase its quarterly dividend to $1.14 per share, representing a yield of 5.3% with an ex-dividend date set for November 12th.

Welch Group LLC boosted its holdings in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 14.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 61,631 shares of the retailer's stock after buying an additional 7,744 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC's holdings in Target were worth $6,080,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Target by 48.1% during the 1st quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 84,190 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,786,000 after buying an additional 27,329 shares during the period. DSG Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Target by 16.1% during the first quarter. DSG Capital Advisors LLC now owns 156,644 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $16,347,000 after acquiring an additional 21,726 shares in the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Target by 27.7% during the second quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 13,208 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,303,000 after acquiring an additional 2,869 shares in the last quarter. Correct Capital Wealth Management raised its stake in Target by 44.7% in the first quarter. Correct Capital Wealth Management now owns 13,556 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,415,000 after buying an additional 4,189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PDT Partners LLC bought a new position in Target in the first quarter worth approximately $4,623,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on TGT. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Target from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Target from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $110.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $80.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Target from $104.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $109.65.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $85.79 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $38.98 billion, a PE ratio of 10.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.18. Target Corporation has a 1-year low of $85.36 and a 1-year high of $161.50.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The retailer reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.01. Target had a net margin of 3.72% and a return on equity of 23.43%. The firm had revenue of $24.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. Target's revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.000-9.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Target Corporation will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.14 per share. This is a positive change from Target's previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. Target's payout ratio is currently 53.15%.

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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