Retirement Systems of Alabama Has $13.48 Million Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Retirement Systems of Alabama trimmed its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 99,739 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 704 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Target were worth $13,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Cynosure Group LLC raised its position in Target by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management increased its stake in shares of Target by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $894,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its position in shares of Target by 3.3% during the third quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its stake in shares of Target by 0.4% during the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 15,678 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 1.1% in the third quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,818 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,063,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Trading Down 2.5 %

NYSE TGT opened at $131.29 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.15. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $135.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $143.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.10 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on TGT. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Target from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $170.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on shares of Target from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $157.70.

Target Profile

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.