Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. cut its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,863 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 94 shares during the period. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. IFG Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Target in the second quarter valued at $1,067,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Target by 74.3% in the second quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 31,183 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,616,000 after buying an additional 13,290 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Target in the second quarter valued at $5,005,000. Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Target by 31.1% in the second quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 44,458 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,582,000 after buying an additional 10,558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holistic Financial Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter worth about $252,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

TGT traded up $0.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $153.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,933,162 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,506,365. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $102.93 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $147.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $154.95. The company has a market capitalization of $71.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.80 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. Target’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Target in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $116.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Target from $158.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “inline” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.68.

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.