The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 13,525 Shares of Target Corporation $TGT

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 5.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 256,809 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 13,525 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Target were worth $31,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Target during the 4th quarter worth $587,903,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $257,571,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 243.8% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,870,210 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $280,563,000 after purchasing an additional 2,035,298 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Target by 6,639.1% during the fourth quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,912,963 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $186,992,000 after purchasing an additional 1,884,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Target by 104.7% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 65,505 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,448,146 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total transaction of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. This trade represents a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on TGT. Barclays reaffirmed an “underweight” rating on shares of Target in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Wolfe Research raised shares of Target from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $162.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Target from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Target from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $133.48.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $144.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $65.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.98. The company’s 50-day moving average is $132.87 and its 200 day moving average is $123.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.93. Target Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $83.44 and a fifty-two week high of $147.77.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.66 billion. Target had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.30 earnings per share. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Target Corporation will post 8.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. Target’s payout ratio is currently 60.24%.

About Target

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.