Target (NYSE:TGT) Releases Q4 Earnings Guidance

Target (NYSE:TGT) issued an update on its fourth quarter earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $1.85-2.45 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15. Target also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 8.300-8.900 EPS.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $133.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target has a one year low of $120.21 and a one year high of $181.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.11, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s fifty day moving average is $136.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.31.

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

Target Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on TGT. HSBC downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Monday, November 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Target has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $159.07.

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.