Plato Investment Management Ltd Makes New $2.96 Million Investment in Target Corporation $TGT

Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 22,805 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,961,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in TGT. Wynn Capital LLC grew its position in Target by 0.9% during the second quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 8,455 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,104,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Target by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 580 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC raised its holdings in Target by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 2,474 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Target by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,478 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. lifted its position in shares of Target by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 2,951 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $358,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on TGT shares. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on Target from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Target from $129.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, August 10th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Target from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Target in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.30.

Target Price Performance

Target stock opened at $154.52 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The company has a market capitalization of $70.18 billion, a PE ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.96. Target Corporation has a one year low of $83.44 and a one year high of $156.47. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $138.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $126.29.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced 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 return on equity of 22.92% and a net margin of 3.24%.The firm had revenue of $25.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.30 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. Target’s payout ratio is currently 61.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total transaction of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. This trade represents a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.