Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Takes Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 752,985 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $101,789,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. owned about 0.16% of Target as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 148.2% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 42,093 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,690,000 after purchasing an additional 25,134 shares during the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,937,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC increased its stake in Target by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 4,096 shares of the retailer's stock worth $554,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Game Creek Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,495,000. Finally, Gen Wealth Partners Inc grew its holdings in shares of Target by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 3,709 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Target from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Capital set a $122.00 price target on Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, KGI Securities set a $132.00 target price on Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $131.20.

Target Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE TGT opened at $96.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $99.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.63. Target Co. has a one year low of $87.35 and a one year high of $167.40. The company has a market capitalization of $43.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.27.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

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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