Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Has $45.51 Million Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC decreased its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 292,000 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 40,000 shares during the quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $45,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 23.6% during the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 642,340 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $112,686,000 after buying an additional 122,706 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Target by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,558 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,618,000 after purchasing an additional 6,690 shares in the last quarter. TAP Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Target in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,403,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Target by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 217,214 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $38,484,000 after purchasing an additional 36,941 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 166.3% during the third quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 16,179 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,522,000 after purchasing an additional 10,103 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

TGT stock opened at $150.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company’s 50-day moving average is $153.04 and its 200-day moving average is $151.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.49 billion, a PE ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.24. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $105.23 and a 1 year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.80 earnings per share. Target’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Target from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.47.

About Target

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.