Target (NYSE:TGT) Downgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group to “Neutral”

The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has $101.00 price target on the retailer’s stock, down from their previous price target of $142.00.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on TGT. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-two have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $132.37.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $93.13 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target has a one year low of $87.35 and a one year high of $169.09. The firm has a market cap of $42.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Target will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 4.81%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.56%.

Institutional Trading of Target

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in Target during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Target by 175.3% during the fourth 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. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 110.7% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 264 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.