Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Sells 617 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,317 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 617 shares during the quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $2,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. United Services Automobile Association increased its stake in shares of Target by 2.9% in 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 in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $605,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Target by 82.8% during 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 last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Target by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 519,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $73,819,000 after acquiring an additional 24,066 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC increased its holdings in Target by 109.9% in the fourth quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 27,267 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after purchasing an additional 14,274 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TGT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Gordon Haskett upped their target price on shares of Target from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $174.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Target from $183.00 to $180.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock traded down $0.82 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $159.59. 2,574,589 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,675,110. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $166.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $102.93 and a 12-month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The company had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.83 billion. Target’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Target’s payout ratio is 49.27%.

Insider Activity

In other Target news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s 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 owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total value of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.