Financial Counselors Inc. Sells 12,608 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Financial Counselors Inc. lessened its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 129,758 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 12,608 shares during the quarter. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $17,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its stake in Target by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 59,843 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,327,000 after acquiring an additional 6,594 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Target by 5.1% in the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 33,514 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,620 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in Target during the 3rd quarter worth $61,000. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its position in Target by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 549,363 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $85,624,000 after buying an additional 19,790 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Target from $133.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Target has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.55.

Target Stock Down 2.8 %

NYSE:TGT opened at $105.37 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $124.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.30. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $101.76 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.56%.

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.