Perpetual Ltd Trims Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Perpetual Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 61.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,148 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 8,213 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in Target were worth $696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 156.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Target in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Target during the third quarter valued at about $41,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $135.74 on Thursday. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The company has a market capitalization of $62.20 billion, a PE ratio of 14.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.16. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $135.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The company had revenue of $25.23 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

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 paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.57.

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.