Cornerstone Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 20,200 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $2,990,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new stake in Target in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the second quarter valued at $31,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $152.92 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.07. The firm has a market cap of $70.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.16, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.19 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on TGT shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $147.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Target 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.