BNP Paribas Exane Increases Target (NYSE:TGT) Price Target to $88.00

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at BNP Paribas Exane from $63.00 to $88.00 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “underperform” rating on the retailer’s stock. BNP Paribas Exane’s target price points to a potential downside of 26.96% from the stock’s previous close.

TGT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Mizuho lifted their price target on Target from $88.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $108.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Target from $90.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.76.

Target Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of TGT opened at $120.48 on Wednesday. Target has a 1 year low of $83.44 and a 1 year high of $126.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $109.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.22. The firm has a market cap of $54.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.82 and a beta of 1.12.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The retailer reported $2.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.28. Target had a net margin of 3.54% and a return on equity of 22.25%. The business had revenue of $30.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.300- EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Target will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Target by 14.7% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,444,338 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,074,984,000 after purchasing an additional 6,607,982 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Target during the fourth quarter valued at $587,903,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Target during the fourth quarter valued at $257,571,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 243.8% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,870,210 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $280,563,000 after buying an additional 2,035,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Target by 6,639.1% in the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,912,963 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $186,992,000 after buying an additional 1,884,577 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Target this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat + clear turnaround roadmap — Target beat adjusted EPS estimates and gave FY/Q1 guidance while unveiling a multi-year growth plan (store investments, remodels, tech/AI). That combination is the primary bullish catalyst. Margins Up, Foot Traffic Down
• Positive Sentiment: Large store expansion and remodel program — Target plans to open >30 stores in 2026 and has a long‑term target of ~300 new stores by 2035, plus >130 remodels this year, which supports comp and square‑foot growth expectations. Target Challenges Retail Rivals With 300-Store Growth Plan
• Positive Sentiment: Investment/AI narrative lifted sentiment — Management’s $2B+ fiscal‑2026 investment plan and AI-driven digital efforts were flagged as growth levers; headlines tied these moves to a notable intraday rally. Target Stock Rises 7% After Unveiling Bold Multi-Year Growth Strategy
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets — Several firms (UBS, Oppenheimer, Telsey, Guggenheim, BMO and others) raised targets and ratings after the investor day/earnings release, which supports momentum and institutional buying interest. (Multiple broker reports compiled across news outlets.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst moves — Some banks raised price targets but maintained neutral/market‑perform ratings (e.g., JPMorgan, Citigroup, Piper). Those changes are supportive but reflect cautious conviction.
• Negative Sentiment: Top‑line weakness and foot‑traffic headwinds remain — Revenue was down ~1.5% y/y in the quarter and commentary noted weaker foot traffic in some categories, a reminder that execution risk on the turnaround is real. Target: Sales Remain Weak, Shares Fairly Valued
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious / bearish analyst notes persist — Bank of America kept an underperform stance and some firms still express execution risk; BNP Paribas Exane’s underperform view (even with a higher PT) highlights downside scenarios if comps don’t recover. Target’s turnaround faces execution risks, says Bank of America

Target Company Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.