Foster & Motley Inc. Increases Holdings in Target Corporation $TGT

Foster & Motley Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 24.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 36,675 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,224 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $4,445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in Target in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new stake in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its holdings in shares of Target by 192.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 292 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total value of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. The trade was a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $139.65 on Friday. Target Corporation has a one year low of $83.44 and a one year high of $142.82. The company’s 50-day moving average is $127.65 and its 200 day moving average is $116.43. The company has a market capitalization of $63.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.66 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Target Corporation will post 8.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. Target’s payout ratio is 60.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on TGT shares. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, June 1st. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Target from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on Target from $148.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Target from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $129.00.

Target Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.