Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Acquired by Plato Investment Management Ltd

Plato Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,495 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Target were worth $3,347,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Target by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $647,652,000 after buying an additional 279,656 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target by 11.4% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,316,738 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $639,050,000 after purchasing an additional 440,307 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 17.5% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $558,898,000 after purchasing an additional 470,647 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Target by 16.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,114,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $461,031,000 after purchasing an additional 435,229 shares during the period. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Target by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,094,644 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $458,131,000 after buying an additional 272,521 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TGT. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.47.

Target Stock Performance

TGT opened at $154.99 on Thursday. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $108.08 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The stock has a market cap of $71.40 billion, a PE ratio of 16.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s 50 day moving average is $152.46 and its 200-day moving average is $150.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.28%.

Insider Activity at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 over the last quarter. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.