Target (NYSE:TGT) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after Freedom Capital downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The stock had previously closed at $127.24, but opened at $120.21. Target shares last traded at $117.9130, with a volume of 5,366,465 shares changing hands.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on TGT. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Target from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Target from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Target from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Evercore set a $130.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Monday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Target from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $124.11.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total transaction of $240,591.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,038.17. The trade was a 14.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Target News

Here are the key news stories impacting Target this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Target reported a strong first quarter, with EPS of $1.71 beating estimates and revenue of $25.44 billion also topping forecasts; comparable sales rose and management lifted full-year sales guidance, reinforcing the view that its turnaround strategy is gaining traction.
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts turned more constructive after the report, with DA Davidson raising its price target to $155 and Telsey Advisory Group lifting its target to $150, both implying meaningful upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Additional commentary highlighted improving traffic, stronger digital and membership revenue, and early strategy gains, which may support expectations for better execution over the rest of the year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Several firms raised price targets but kept neutral ratings, suggesting the earnings beat was solid but not yet enough to eliminate caution around valuation and near-term upside.
• Negative Sentiment: Not all updates were positive: Freedom Capital downgraded Target to hold, and some commentary warned that cost pressures, execution risk, and softer consumer sentiment could limit how quickly the turnaround translates into sustained profit growth.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Target during the 1st quarter valued at about $48,000. Essential Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 3,160 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 85.3% in the 1st quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 834 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 142.5% in the 1st quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,590 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $799,000 after acquiring an additional 3,872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Target in the 1st quarter valued at about $455,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Up 3.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $57.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $109.49.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.24. Target had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.92%. The company had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. Target’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.25 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.09%.

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.