Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Position Lessened by Powers Advisory Group LLC

Powers Advisory Group LLC trimmed its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 8,774 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 94 shares during the quarter. Target makes up about 0.9% of Powers Advisory Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Powers Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of TGT. Norges Bank bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter worth about $759,810,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Target by 15,009.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,757,088 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $250,244,000 after buying an additional 1,745,459 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Target by 51,357.7% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,220,576 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $173,834,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218,204 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in Target by 58.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,683,228 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $382,145,000 after acquiring an additional 984,464 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Target by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,447,538,000 after purchasing an additional 868,274 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $209.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $116.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Target from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.61.

Target Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE TGT traded down $0.59 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $144.80. The company had a trading volume of 1,633,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,936,275. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.86. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $151.71 and its 200-day moving average is $153.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.99 billion, a PE ratio of 16.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.19.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $24.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.52 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. This is a boost from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. Target’s payout ratio is 49.38%.

Target Company Profile

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.