Criterion Capital Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Criterion Capital Advisors LLC lowered its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 56.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 184 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 240 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $33,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $759,810,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 15,009.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,757,088 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $250,244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,745,459 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 51,357.7% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,220,576 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $173,834,000 after purchasing an additional 1,218,204 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 58.0% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,683,228 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $382,145,000 after purchasing an additional 984,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Target by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,447,538,000 after purchasing an additional 868,274 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Target from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $177.61.

Target Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Target stock traded up $1.32 on Friday, reaching $148.04. 12,772,526 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,818,235. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $68.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $152.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.10.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.02). Target had a return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The company had revenue of $24.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.52 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.32 EPS for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 49.38%.

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.