Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. reduced its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,276 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,029 shares during the period. Target accounts for about 1.8% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $11,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of TGT. United Services Automobile Association grew its position 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 valued at $4,891,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $605,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 82.8% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Target by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 519,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $73,819,000 after acquiring an additional 24,066 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asio Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 109.9% in the fourth quarter. Asio Capital LLC now owns 27,267 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,883,000 after acquiring an additional 14,274 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on TGT shares. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Target from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Gordon Haskett upped their price objective on Target from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $195.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.85.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,576,658.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Target news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598 over the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Target Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE TGT traded down $1.69 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $163.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,532,709 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,668,841. The company has a market capitalization of $75.28 billion, a PE ratio of 18.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $165.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.49.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.57. The firm had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 3.85%. Target’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 company posted $1.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.27%.

About Target

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.