Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Sells 7,642 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 72.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,965 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,642 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Target during the third quarter valued at about $375,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Target by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 172,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $19,119,000 after acquiring an additional 15,198 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target by 3.5% in the third quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,820 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Target by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 98,034 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,840,000 after buying an additional 3,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hills Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in Target during the 3rd quarter valued at $131,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

NYSE TGT opened at $158.40 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $73.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $166.63 and a 200 day moving average of $145.54. Target Co. has a one year low of $102.93 and a one year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.57. Target had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 3.85%. The firm had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s payout ratio is 49.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Target from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Target from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Target from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.85.

Insider Activity at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. 0.23% of the stock is 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.