Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $180.00 to $150.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the retailer’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Melius Research began coverage on Target in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $184.00 to $108.00 in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $188.00 to $130.00 in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.13.

Target Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of Target stock opened at $125.01 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $57.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $151.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $149.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Target has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Target will post 9.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s payout ratio is 47.51%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 12.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target by 156.5% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.