Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC

Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 17.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,132 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,958 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,234,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cynosure Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.2% during the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $894,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp grew its position in Target by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its stake in Target by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 15,678 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Target by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,818 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,063,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. HSBC downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.57.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $134.58 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $61.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.27, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $120.21 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $137.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $145.39.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.