Target (NYSE:TGT) Sets New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $85.24 and last traded at $88.8320, with a volume of 2465990 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $88.53.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on TGT. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Target from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Roth Capital set a $88.00 price objective on Target in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Target in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $80.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Target from $100.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Target in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-two have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.97.

Target Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $39.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The retailer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $25.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.44 billion. Target had a return on equity of 23.43% and a net margin of 3.72%.The business’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. Target has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.000-8.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 12th. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.12. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 53.15%.

Institutional Trading of Target

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Oarsman Capital Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 36.4% during the 3rd quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 3,071 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Target by 77.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 5,784 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $519,000 after purchasing an additional 2,518 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Target by 0.5% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 154,840 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $13,889,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 7.4% in the third quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,972 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Target in the third quarter valued at $18,675,000. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.