Traders Buy High Volume of Target Call Options (NYSE:TGT)

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders bought 97,780 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 121% compared to the average volume of 44,326 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were 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 directly owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TGT. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Target by 8.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732,801 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Target by 11.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Target by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,461,456,000 after acquiring an additional 130,691 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Target by 6.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $647,652,000 after acquiring an additional 279,656 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 11.4% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,316,738 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $639,050,000 after purchasing an additional 440,307 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $125.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $57.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $151.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Target has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Target will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TGT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup lowered Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $188.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim lowered their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. HSBC downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.13.

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.