Level Four Advisory Services LLC Lowers Stock Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC trimmed its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 24.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 27,124 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 8,603 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $3,667,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in Target by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 273,699 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $36,999,000 after purchasing an additional 29,151 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Target by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 444,954 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $60,149,000 after acquiring an additional 28,185 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 64,580.0% during the 4th quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 22,638 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,060,000 after acquiring an additional 22,603 shares during the period. Easterly Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Target by 147.5% in the 4th quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 117,944 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $15,944,000 after acquiring an additional 70,283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth about $757,892,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $103.63 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $101.76 and a 12 month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on TGT shares. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Target from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Target from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.40.

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.