Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Plans Quarterly Dividend of $1.12

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, June 12th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a dividend of 1.12 per share by the retailer on Monday, September 1st. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%.

Target has a dividend payout ratio of 54.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Target to earn $9.32 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 48.1%.

Target Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of TGT stock traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $99.20. The stock had a trading volume of 5,315,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,110,448. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $95.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.66. Target has a 52-week low of $87.35 and a 52-week high of $167.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.07 billion, a PE ratio of 10.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TGT has been the topic of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Target from $112.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Target from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Target from $92.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Target from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $97.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $100.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.70.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $4,328,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,703,849.54. The trade was a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Target stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) by 101.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,080 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 3,059 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Target were worth $822,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.