Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Stake Lowered by Smith Moore & CO.

Smith Moore & CO. trimmed its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,461 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 131 shares during the period. Smith Moore & CO.’s holdings in Target were worth $333,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in TGT. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Target in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in Target by 175.3% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Target by 110.7% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE:TGT opened at $95.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $43.60 billion, a PE ratio of 10.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.62 and a fifty-two week high of $173.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $119.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $134.73.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 yield of 4.68%. Target’s payout ratio is 50.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on TGT shares. UBS Group cut their target price on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Target from $133.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Target from $146.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Target from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.24.

Target 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.