Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System lowered its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 750,760 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 18,641 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Target were worth $101,488,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nicholas Company Inc. raised its holdings in Target by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,544,000 after buying an additional 9,485 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Target by 144.9% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $31,699,000 after purchasing an additional 138,751 shares during the period. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Target by 29.0% in the 4th quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 14,354 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,940,000 after purchasing an additional 3,231 shares during the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,459,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in shares of Target by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,430,000 after buying an additional 3,590 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $96.37 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $104.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $127.12. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $87.35 and a twelve month high of $167.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.22, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.83 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.65%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on TGT shares. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Target from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Gordon Haskett lowered Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.37.

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.