Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. Boosts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,417 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $597,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Target during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Target by 175.3% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Target by 110.7% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on TGT shares. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $134.00 to $124.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.40.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $106.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company has a market cap of $48.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $123.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.87. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $101.76 and a 1-year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. Analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.21%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

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.