Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 380 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 6.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,652 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 380 shares during the period. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Target were worth $881,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Okabena Investment Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Target by 469.5% in the third quarter. Okabena Investment Services Inc. now owns 158,775 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $24,747,000 after acquiring an additional 130,894 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Target by 13.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 176,584 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $27,522,000 after purchasing an additional 21,008 shares during the last quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. grew its position in Target by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Stonebrook Private Inc. now owns 2,840 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC bought a new stake in Target during the 3rd quarter valued at about $436,000. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Target in the third quarter worth about $644,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value of $997,715.16. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 12.08 % 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 in the last three months. 0.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $184.00 to $108.00 in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Target in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered their target price on shares of Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.13.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $125.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $57.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $120.21 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $151.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $149.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.10 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.51%.

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.