River Global Investors LLP Buys 2,111 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

River Global Investors LLP increased its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,683 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,111 shares during the quarter. River Global Investors LLP’s holdings in Target were worth $2,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of TGT. United Services Automobile Association increased its stake in shares of Target by 2.9% during the third quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 44,232 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,891,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the period. RFG Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $605,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 82.8% in the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Target by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 519,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $73,819,000 after purchasing an additional 24,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC increased its holdings in Target by 109.9% during the fourth quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 27,267 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after buying an additional 14,274 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TGT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Target from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.85.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598 in the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE TGT traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $158.04. The stock had a trading volume of 3,802,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,973,106. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $102.93 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $166.46 and a 200 day moving average of $144.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $73.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.27%.

Target 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.