JGP Wealth Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

JGP Wealth Management LLC decreased its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 10.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,712 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,663 shares during the period. JGP Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,989,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Target by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,044 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,461,456,000 after acquiring an additional 130,691 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in shares of Target by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $647,652,000 after acquiring an additional 279,656 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $517,620,000 after acquiring an additional 62,916 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of TGT opened at $133.06 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $136.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.31.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The company had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.10 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on TGT. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Target in a report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Monday, November 25th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $160.57.

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.