Gemmer Asset Management LLC Makes New $267,000 Investment in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Gemmer Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 1,978 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Target by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in Target by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Target by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,461,456,000 after acquiring an additional 130,691 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Target by 6.8% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $647,652,000 after acquiring an additional 279,656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 1.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $517,620,000 after acquiring an additional 62,916 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $133.62 on Monday. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $136.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $145.14.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. Target’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.6 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on TGT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Guggenheim decreased their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.23.

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.