Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Acquired by Monarch Capital Management Inc.

Monarch Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,217 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Monarch Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,922,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ballew Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Target by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Ballew Advisors Inc now owns 3,268 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its position in shares of Target by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 2,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in shares of Target by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 16,231 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,194,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Target by 28.3% in the 4th quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 80,959 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,944,000 after purchasing an additional 17,843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verity & Verity LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 124,256 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $16,797,000 after purchasing an additional 9,035 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Target from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Daiwa America downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.23.

Target Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Target stock opened at $133.62 on Friday. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $136.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Target’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Target’s payout ratio is presently 47.51%.

About Target

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.