Moors & Cabot Inc. Has $2 Million Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,776 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 310 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,555,542,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,044 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,461,456,000 after purchasing an additional 130,691 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,832,585 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $518,089,000 after purchasing an additional 234,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $517,620,000 after purchasing an additional 62,916 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $107.31 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $130.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $140.51. The company has a market cap of $49.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.38, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $107.02 and a 1-year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.17%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on TGT. UBS Group reduced their target price on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Roth Capital set a $122.00 price target on Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price target (down from $131.00) on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Daiwa America cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.87.

Target Company 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.