DDD Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

DDD Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 50.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 65,051 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 65,750 shares during the period. DDD Partners LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $9,265,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its position in shares of Target by 3,577.5% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,471 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 1,431 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its stake in Target by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 3,045 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $646,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in Target by 131.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 702 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $149,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Target during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Finally, Ergoteles LLC lifted its stake in Target by 191.5% during the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 11,794 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,503,000 after acquiring an additional 7,748 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on TGT shares. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $149.00 to $206.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Target from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Target from $142.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.73.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total value of $495,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total transaction of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,576,658.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $174.67 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.56, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.13. Target Co. has a one year low of $102.93 and a one year high of $175.53. The company’s fifty day moving average is $153.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $134.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.57. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The company had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.89 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.27%.

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.