Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 315,008 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 29.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 745,369 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 315,008 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Target were worth $100,759,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bedell Frazier Investment Counselling LLC bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,943,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter worth $1,052,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Target by 169.4% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 80,472 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,878,000 after purchasing an additional 50,600 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Target by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 56,384 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,622,000 after purchasing an additional 6,253 shares during the period. Finally, Bcwm LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $11,527,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TGT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Target from $146.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price target (down from $131.00) on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Target presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $142.90.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $105.84 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $48.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $121.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.54. Target Co. has a one year low of $99.98 and a one year high of $177.23.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.23%. Target’s payout ratio is 50.56%.

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.