Diversify Advisory Services LLC Trims Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,774 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 332 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Target by 6.8% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $647,652,000 after buying an additional 279,656 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Target by 11.4% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,316,738 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $639,050,000 after buying an additional 440,307 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in Target by 17.5% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $558,898,000 after buying an additional 470,647 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Target by 16.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,114,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $461,031,000 after buying an additional 435,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,094,644 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $458,131,000 after purchasing an additional 272,521 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on TGT shares. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Target in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Target from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Target stock opened at $150.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company has a market capitalization of $69.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $153.19 and its 200 day moving average is $151.50. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $105.23 and a twelve month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 46.28%.

About Target

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.