Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Institute for Wealth Management LLC.

Institute for Wealth Management LLC. reduced its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,175 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 746 shares during the quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Target were worth $429,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in TGT. State Street Corp lifted its position in Target by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732,801 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 11.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,044 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Target by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,461,456,000 after buying an additional 130,691 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in 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 worth $517,620,000 after buying an additional 62,916 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Target by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,053,471 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $475,914,000 after buying an additional 56,695 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Stock Down 1.9 %

TGT stock opened at $137.82 on Friday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $134.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.58. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $63.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.16.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Friday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Daiwa America downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $157.70.

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.