What is Zacks Research's Estimate for Target Q1 Earnings?

Key Points

• Zacks Research raised Target’s Q1 2028 EPS estimate to $1.78 from $1.44, indicating a more optimistic view of the retailer’s near-term earnings outlook.
• The firm also lifted longer-term forecasts, including Q1 2029 EPS to $1.91, suggesting improved profit expectations across multiple future periods.
• Target recently beat quarterly expectations, reporting $1.71 EPS on $25.44 billion in revenue, and it reaffirmed FY2026 guidance of $7.50 to $8.50 EPS.

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT - Free Report) - Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q1 2028 earnings estimates for shares of Target in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, June 3rd. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the retailer will earn $1.78 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.44. The consensus estimate for Target's current full-year earnings is $8.35 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Target's Q1 2029 earnings at $1.91 EPS.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.24. Target had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.92%. The firm had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. Target's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Target from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Roth Mkm reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $114.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Target from $112.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Freedom Capital downgraded shares of Target from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Target from $132.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $125.93.

Target Stock Down 0.6%

TGT stock opened at $124.02 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $124.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.94. Target has a 12 month low of $83.44 and a 12 month high of $133.10. The company has a market cap of $56.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $1.14 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total value of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. This trade represents a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total transaction of $240,591.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,423,038.17. This represents a 14.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,925,898 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $5,195,953,000 after purchasing an additional 6,481,560 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $587,903,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $257,571,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 243.8% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,870,210 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $280,563,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Target by 6,639.1% in the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,912,963 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $186,992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,577 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Target

Here are the key news stories impacting Target this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its earnings estimates for Target across multiple periods, including FY2027, FY2028, and FY2029, signaling improved longer-term profit expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: The most notable upgrade was for FY2027, where estimates increased to $8.38 per share from $7.98, slightly above the current consensus of $8.35, suggesting analysts now see upside to near-term earnings.
• Positive Sentiment: Target’s Q1 2028 and Q1 2029 EPS forecasts were also lifted, reinforcing a more constructive outlook on future operating performance.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some estimates were only nudged higher or lower by small amounts, such as Q4 2027 being trimmed slightly to $2.56 and Q4 2028 being reduced to $2.71, indicating the changes are incremental rather than a major outlook shift.

About Target

Target Corporation NYSE: TGT is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.

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