Zions Bancorporation N.A. Buys 1,822 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 25,432 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,822 shares during the quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in Target were worth $3,964,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of TGT. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its position in shares of Target by 1.2% during the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $894,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Target by 20.8% during the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Target by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,382 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont lifted its stake in Target by 0.4% in the third quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 15,678 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 9.7% in the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 806 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $119,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. StockNews.com lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.47.

Target Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of TGT stock opened at $154.99 on Thursday. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $108.08 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The company has a market capitalization of $71.40 billion, a PE ratio of 16.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $152.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $150.52. 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 (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.80 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Target’s payout ratio is presently 46.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 over the last 90 days. 0.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.