Equity Investment Corp Lowers Position in Target Corporation $TGT

Equity Investment Corp cut its holdings in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,154,851 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 140,758 shares during the quarter. Target accounts for about 2.3% of Equity Investment Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Equity Investment Corp’s holdings in Target were worth $112,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. 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 purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 168.9% during the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 355 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $132.59 on Friday. 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 Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $83.44 and a fifty-two week high of $133.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.22 billion, a PE ratio of 17.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $125.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.34.

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

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on TGT shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Target in a report on Monday, May 4th. Mizuho set a $120.00 target price on Target in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Target in a report on Monday, June 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on Target from $130.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Freedom Capital cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total transaction of $1,258,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 45,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,782,127.70. This represents a 17.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total value of $240,591.07. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 12,143 shares in the company, valued at $1,423,038.17. This represents a 14.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.