Platform Technology Partners Sells 408 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Platform Technology Partners cut its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,980 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 408 shares during the quarter. Platform Technology Partners’ holdings in Target were worth $538,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Target by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,368,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the period. Northeast Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,566,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in shares of Target by 8.6% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 119,458 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,619,000 after purchasing an additional 9,510 shares in the last quarter. Prana Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Target by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 217,081 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,834,000 after purchasing an additional 69,885 shares during the period. Finally, Polianta Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Target by 39.2% during the 4th quarter. Polianta Ltd now owns 10,300 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,392,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Target from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of Target from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $170.00 to $130.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $157.70.

Target Price Performance

Target stock opened at $131.29 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.16 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.15. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $135.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $143.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.51%.

Target 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.