Trust Co. of Vermont Raises Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,231 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Target were worth $2,194,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. lifted its stake in Target by 28.3% during the 4th quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 80,959 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,944,000 after acquiring an additional 17,843 shares in the last quarter. Verity & Verity LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 124,256 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $16,797,000 after purchasing an additional 9,035 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC bought a new position in shares of Target during the fourth quarter valued at about $921,000. Somerset Trust Co boosted its holdings in Target by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 17,387 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,350,000 after purchasing an additional 590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in Target by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 56,193 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,596,000 after purchasing an additional 5,408 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of TGT stock opened at $133.62 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $61.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $136.13 and its 200 day moving average is $145.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released 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 net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.6 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. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 presently 47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. Daiwa America downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on Target from $180.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Roth Mkm cut their price target on shares of Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Target from $156.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One 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 MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.23.

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.