Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Stock Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 6.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,469 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,637 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Target were worth $12,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new position in shares of Target in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on Target from $209.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.68.

Insider Activity at Target

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s 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 owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $151.97 on Wednesday. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $102.93 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $70.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $148.19 and a 200-day moving average of $155.05.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.19 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.80 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.53 EPS for the current year.

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.