Essential Planning LLC. Takes $1.56 Million Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Essential Planning LLC. purchased a new stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 10,868 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,560,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 175.3% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Target by 110.7% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Target from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $170.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Target from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $122.00 target price (down from $131.00) on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.87.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $107.31 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $49.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. 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 one year low of $107.02 and a one year high of $181.86. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $130.62 and a 200-day moving average of $140.51.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.17%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

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.