Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Purchased by Stevens Capital Management LP

Stevens Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 185.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,628 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 9,502 shares during the period. Target makes up 0.8% of Stevens Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Target were worth $1,977,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Target by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,368,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Target by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,647,000 after purchasing an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 704,168 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $109,752,000 after purchasing an additional 21,241 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $644,000. Finally, Nwam LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $436,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on TGT. Daiwa America cut shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $145.55.

Target Price Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $104.29 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $101.76 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.06, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s payout ratio is currently 50.56%.

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.