Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Acquired by Public Sector Pension Investment Board

Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 75.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,872 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,699 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Target were worth $2,646,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Target by 56.1% during the first quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 178 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the second quarter worth $28,000. Retirement Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Target by 85.0% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 198 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Target

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Roth Mkm upped their price target on Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.69.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $155.18 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $148.75 and a 200-day moving average of $154.56. The company has a market cap of $71.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.90. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $102.93 and a 1 year high of $181.86.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

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.