Target Co. (TGT) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.12 on March 1st

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, January 15th,RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of 1.12 per share by the retailer on Saturday, March 1st. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th.

Target has raised its dividend by an average of 12.0% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 24 consecutive years. Target has a dividend payout ratio of 43.8% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Target to earn $9.32 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 48.1%.

Target Stock Performance

Target stock opened at $131.29 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $135.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.16 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.15. Target has a one year low of $120.21 and a one year high of $181.86. 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 (NYSE:TGT) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Target will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Target from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Friday, January 17th. HSBC downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $157.70.

Target Company 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.