Melissa Kremer Sells 15,500 Shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) insider Melissa Kremer sold 15,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.96, for a total transaction of $2,634,380.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 56,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,684,490.76. This represents a 21.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Target Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $165.80 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $143.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.63. Target Corporation has a 52-week low of $83.44 and a 52-week high of $170.75. The firm has a market cap of $75.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The retailer reported $4.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $1.76. Target had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The business had revenue of $26.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $26.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.900 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Target from $161.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Target from $166.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Target from $129.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Target from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.52.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Target by 13,417.6% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 91,340,014 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,929,919,000 after purchasing an additional 90,664,304 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter worth approximately $5,054,604,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Target during the second quarter worth $831,466,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Target during the fourth quarter worth $587,903,000. Finally, TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $257,571,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Company Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.