Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp lessened its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 423,071 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,671 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp owned about 0.09% of Target worth $57,191,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Target by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 135,908 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $20,121,000 after acquiring an additional 5,548 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in shares of Target by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 3,006 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its position in Target by 24.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,049,901 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $163,638,000 after buying an additional 208,195 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Target by 6.0% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 182,342 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $28,420,000 after buying an additional 10,281 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $117.05 on Wednesday. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $112.53 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $53.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $133.23 and its 200-day moving average is $142.09. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Daiwa America cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $184.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $156.43.

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.