Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Tufton Capital Management

Tufton Capital Management trimmed its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,611 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,173 shares during the quarter. Target makes up about 2.2% of Tufton Capital Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Target were worth $10,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,527,706 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,923,428,000 after buying an additional 702,565 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,570,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,725,904,000 after buying an additional 1,529,881 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 95,980.3% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,537,742 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,762,865,000 after buying an additional 18,518,448 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,300,283 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,371,516,000 after buying an additional 80,027 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 26.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,762,227 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $747,699,000 after buying an additional 1,415,900 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT traded up $2.87 on Thursday, reaching $167.34. 1,076,587 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,758,166. The firm has a market cap of $77.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $102.93 and a 12 month high of $181.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $162.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.34.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 3.85%. Target’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 49.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on TGT. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Target from $142.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on Target from $180.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.85.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total value of $495,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.