Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Lowers Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co trimmed its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 42,040 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,929 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Target were worth $5,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of TGT. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Target in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Target in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target by 175.3% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Target by 110.7% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of TGT stock opened at $106.49 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $123.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.87. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $101.76 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.51 billion, a PE ratio of 11.29, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. On average, analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.21%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 50.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Target from $133.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Target from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Target from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.40.

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.