Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Target (NYSE:TGT) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

TGT has been the topic of several other research reports. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $137.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.13.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $121.66. 18,034,853 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,305,211. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Target has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The company has a market capitalization of $56.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.57, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $151.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $149.92.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target will post 9.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This trade represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new position in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 156.5% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in 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.