Moore Capital Management LP Purchases New Position in Target Corporation $TGT

Moore Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 38,743 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $5,060,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Winning Points Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $611,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Target by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,194,448 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $605,507,000 after purchasing an additional 142,937 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in Target by 41.8% during the first quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 111,001 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $13,453,000 after purchasing an additional 32,746 shares during the period. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new position in Target during the first quarter valued at approximately $6,686,000. Finally, United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund purchased a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,470,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 926 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $151,410.26. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 12,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,005,613.66. This represents a 7.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 15,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.96, for a total value of $2,634,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 56,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,684,490.76. This represents a 21.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of TGT stock opened at $160.91 on Tuesday. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $83.44 and a 12 month high of $170.75. The stock has a market cap of $73.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.30.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The retailer reported $4.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.35 by $1.76. Target had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The business had revenue of $26.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $26.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.900 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Target Corporation will post 8.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Target from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on Target from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Target from $127.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Target from $146.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $159.52.

Target Company Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.