Target Corporation $TGT Shares Sold by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its holdings in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 5.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 149,802 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 7,888 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Target were worth $19,566,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of TGT. Winning Points Advisors LLC bought a new position in Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $611,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Target by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,194,448 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $605,507,000 after acquiring an additional 142,937 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Target by 41.8% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 111,001 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $13,453,000 after acquiring an additional 32,746 shares during the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new position in shares of Target during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $6,686,000. Finally, United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund purchased a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at $27,470,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Target from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Target in a report on Friday, June 12th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Target from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Target from $144.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Target from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seventeen have assigned 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 an average price target of $140.00.

Target Price Performance

Target stock opened at $154.00 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $136.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $125.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.95 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Target Corporation has a 12-month low of $83.44 and a 12-month high of $154.89.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.24. The firm 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 firm’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 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 8.37 EPS for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 3.0%. This is a boost from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.24%.

Insider Activity at Target

In other news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $5,782,127.70. This represents a 17.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate 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.