Blue Chip Partners LLC Sells 10,033 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Blue Chip Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 138,066 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 10,033 shares during the quarter. Target accounts for about 1.6% of Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Blue Chip Partners LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $18,664,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in TGT. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Target by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after acquiring an additional 2,732,801 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Target by 9,940.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,001,391 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $311,937,000 after purchasing an additional 1,981,458 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in Target by 173.2% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,369,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $369,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502,200 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Target by 11.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,555,542,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,044 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Target by 773.1% during the third quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 832,766 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $129,795,000 after purchasing an additional 737,384 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $127.86 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $58.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.56, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 1.15. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average of $135.11 and a 200 day moving average of $143.13.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s payout ratio is presently 47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on TGT. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Target from $129.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $156.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $157.70.

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.