Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. Increases Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. lifted its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,773 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 68 shares during the quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth $759,810,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 15,009.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,757,088 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $250,244,000 after acquiring an additional 1,745,459 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 51,357.7% in the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,220,576 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $173,834,000 after acquiring an additional 1,218,204 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 58.0% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Target by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,447,538,000 after purchasing an additional 868,274 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Stock Up 2.0 %

TGT stock traded up $2.96 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $154.26. The company had a trading volume of 1,730,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,894,005. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $102.93 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $71.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a 50 day moving average of $149.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.92.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $24.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.52 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.87% and a return on equity of 31.91%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.38%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on TGT shares. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $153.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Gordon Haskett upped their target price on Target from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Target from $180.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Target in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $116.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.57.

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.