Target (NYSE:TGT) Price Target Cut to $130.00 by Analysts at Evercore ISI

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price target trimmed by Evercore ISI from $165.00 to $130.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an in-line rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on TGT. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Daiwa America raised shares of Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.13.

Target Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of TGT traded up $2.31 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $123.90. 1,622,880 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,293,558. The firm has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $149.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 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.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Target will post 9.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. Target’s payout ratio is 46.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. This represents a 12.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value of $997,715.16. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Target during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new position in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Target during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in Target by 156.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.