Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Purchases 14,917 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 335,099 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,917 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.07% of Target worth $47,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. United Services Automobile Association grew 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 acquiring an additional 1,239 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $605,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Target by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 519,634 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $73,819,000 after purchasing an additional 24,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC raised its position 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. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at $6,576,658.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the transaction, 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. Insiders have sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598 in the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $158.04. 3,233,931 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,973,106. The company has a market capitalization 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. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $144.39. 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 Co. has a 52-week low of $102.93 and a 52-week high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 analyst estimates of $31.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Target from $142.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $174.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.