Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Holdings Decreased by Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank reduced its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,059 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 274 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Target were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of TGT. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 7,715 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC boosted its position in Target by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 7,059 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,005,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 5,704 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $812,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Target by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 494 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TGT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $174.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup upgraded Target from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

Insider Activity

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,576,658.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

NYSE:TGT traded down $0.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $160.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,387,692 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,660,333. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $166.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.90. The company has a market capitalization of $74.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.96, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. The company had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s payout ratio is 49.27%.

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.