Target (NYSE:TGT) Given “Outperform” Rating at Telsey Advisory Group

Telsey Advisory Group reissued their outperform rating on shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $150.00 target price on the retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms also recently commented on TGT. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Citigroup cut Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $188.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Target in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm dropped their target price on Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.23.

Target Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of TGT stock opened at $133.62 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $136.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Target has a 1-year low of $120.21 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $61.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Target’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.10 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Target will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Target by 33.9% in the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 53,968 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,989,000 after buying an additional 13,678 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 21.2% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 42,627 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,311,000 after acquiring an additional 7,468 shares during the last quarter. Trust Investment Advisors lifted its position in shares of Target by 2.7% in the second quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 7,179 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,063,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Target by 56.5% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 14,228 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,106,000 after acquiring an additional 5,137 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in shares of Target by 3.9% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 3,506 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $519,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Company 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.