Target (NYSE:TGT) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Daiwa America

Target (NYSE:TGT) was downgraded by analysts at Daiwa America from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on TGT. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup lowered Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $188.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Guggenheim dropped their price target on Target from $180.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.30.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $130.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $59.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a fifty-two week low of $120.21 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $149.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $148.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Target’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Target

In related news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. This trade represents a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Target

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Target during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Target during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP bought a new stake in Target during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Target during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in Target by 156.5% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.