Target (NYSE:TGT) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Capital set a $122.00 price objective on Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their target price on Target from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $142.90.

Target Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $105.84 on Wednesday. Target has a 12-month low of $100.50 and a 12-month high of $177.23. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $121.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.22 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.23%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Target by 12.9% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 20,172 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,144,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in Target by 550.8% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 22,818 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,557,000 after purchasing an additional 19,312 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Target by 63.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 371,816 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $57,952,000 after purchasing an additional 144,323 shares during the last quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario grew its holdings in shares of Target by 4.6% during the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 17,097 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,665,000 after buying an additional 752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Target by 45.7% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 27,179 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,236,000 after buying an additional 8,525 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.