Focused Investors LLC Has $105.36 Million Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Focused Investors LLC decreased its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 676,000 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 12,700 shares during the quarter. Target makes up 3.2% of Focused Investors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Focused Investors LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Target worth $105,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Patten & Patten Inc. TN raised its position in shares of Target by 6.4% during the first quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 9,837 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its position in Target by 146.7% during the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 9,729 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 5,785 shares during the period. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC bought a new position in Target during the 1st quarter worth approximately $248,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Target by 43.7% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 352 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Lcnb Corp lifted its position in shares of Target by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 1,809 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $152.13 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $152.56 and a 200-day moving average of $150.39. Target Co. has a one year low of $127.19 and a one year high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $70.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.24.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The firm had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TGT. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Target in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 target price for the company. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.47.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other Target news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value of $997,715.16. Following the sale, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. This represents a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 in the last quarter. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.