Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price Down 1.6% on Insider Selling

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 1.6% on Monday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $92.06 and last traded at $92.52. Approximately 1,694,851 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 6,017,711 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.01.

Specifically, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 246,453 shares of the company's stock, 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 document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Target from $97.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Target from $140.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report 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 for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, KGI Securities set a $132.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment 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, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $116.70.

Target Trading Down 0.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $95.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $117.00. The company has a market capitalization of $42.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $24.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. Target's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.78%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. Target's payout ratio is currently 49.23%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Target by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,930,569 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $2,964,565,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306,552 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 407.8% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,970,414 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,666,672,000 after purchasing an additional 12,825,586 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,532,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358,348 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,332,317,000 after purchasing an additional 470,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $757,892,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by 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.