Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by WealthPLAN Partners LLC

WealthPLAN Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 17.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,090 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 850 shares during the period. WealthPLAN Partners LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Target by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,368,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Target by 25.0% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,430,000 after purchasing an additional 3,590 shares during the last quarter. Northeast Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth about $1,566,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in shares of Target by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 119,458 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $18,619,000 after purchasing an additional 9,510 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prana Capital Management LP grew its stake in Target by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 217,081 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,834,000 after acquiring an additional 69,885 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $127.86 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.21. The firm has a market cap of $58.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.56, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.15. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. Target’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on TGT shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Target from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $157.70.

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.