1,943 Shares in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Acquired by Silver Oak Securities Incorporated

Silver Oak Securities Incorporated acquired a new position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,943 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $277,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Retirement Systems of Alabama acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $14,489,000. Magnus Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $291,000. Convergence Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Intellectus Partners LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $709,000. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Target by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 3,712 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TheStreet raised shares of Target from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Target from $167.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Target from $142.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Target news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total transaction of $7,538,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $156.44 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.23 billion, a PE ratio of 17.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.14. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $166.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.30.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. Target had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The firm had revenue of $31.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.89 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.27%.

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.