First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. cut its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,902 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,543 shares during the period. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $7,392,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Target by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,339 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 7,059 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,005,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 18.8% in the 4th quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 494 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,760 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,517,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,576,658.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Target Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE TGT opened at $164.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $76.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.14. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $165.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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

Target Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on TGT shares. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $174.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Target from $142.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Target from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Target has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

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.