Cibc World Market Inc. Buys 9,245 Shares of Target Corporation $TGT

Cibc World Market Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 38.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,199 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 9,245 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Market Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $4,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of TGT. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Target by 4.1% during the second quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,747 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Wynn Capital LLC increased its holdings in Target by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 8,455 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,104,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Target by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 580 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lifted its stake in Target by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 2,474 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Target by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,478 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Target from $148.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Target from $166.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Evercore set a $170.00 target price on Target in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Freedom Capital lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.52.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $163.20 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $142.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $128.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.95, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.97. Target Corporation has a one year low of $83.44 and a one year high of $170.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.36.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 19th. The retailer reported $4.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.35 by $1.76. Target had a net margin of 4.08% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The company had revenue of $26.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.900-10.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 48.18%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 926 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $151,410.26. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,005,613.66. This trade represents a 7.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,782,127.70. This represents a 17.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Target Company 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.