HSBC Downgrades Target (NYSE:TGT) to Hold

Target (NYSE:TGT) was downgraded by HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a $138.00 target price on the retailer’s stock. HSBC’s target price indicates a potential upside of 13.43% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America raised their target price on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Target from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.13.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $121.66 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $56.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $151.79 and a 200-day moving average of $149.92.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Target will post 9.55 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. This trade represents a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % 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 in the last three months. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Target by 8.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after buying an additional 2,732,801 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Target by 9,940.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,001,391 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $311,937,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981,458 shares during the period. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Target during the 1st quarter valued at about $335,870,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of Target by 173.2% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,369,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $369,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502,200 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 11.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,044 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.