Lincoln National Corp Sells 509 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Lincoln National Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 17,410 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 509 shares during the quarter. Lincoln National Corp’s holdings in Target were worth $2,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,339 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $760,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC lifted its position in Target by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 7,059 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,005,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 5,704 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $812,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 494 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 4.4% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,887 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Target Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Target stock traded up $2.06 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $160.41. The company had a trading volume of 2,890,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,680,698. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $166.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.54. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The firm has a market cap of $74.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.10 per share. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on TGT. Bank of America boosted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Gordon Haskett upped their price target on shares of Target from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Target from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.85.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598 in the last quarter. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.