NewSquare Capital LLC Boosts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,078 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $2,675,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. United Services Automobile Association boosted its stake in shares of Target by 2.9% in the third quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 44,232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,891,000 after buying an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter worth approximately $605,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 82.8% during the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Target by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 519,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $73,819,000 after purchasing an additional 24,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 109.9% during the 4th quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 27,267 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after purchasing an additional 14,274 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Down 0.4 %

Target stock traded down $0.64 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $165.87. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,183,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,704,334. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $164.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.30. The company has a market capitalization of $76.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $102.93 and a 12 month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $31.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 49.27%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $174.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. HSBC raised Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $195.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim upped their target price on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Target from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.85.

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.