Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 241 Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 241 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $38,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of TGT. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 9,940.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,001,391 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $311,937,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981,458 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 1st quarter valued at $335,870,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 711.2% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 876,531 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $129,762,000 after acquiring an additional 768,479 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 1st quarter valued at $107,367,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $558,898,000 after acquiring an additional 470,647 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

TGT stock opened at $147.29 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $67.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.90. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $105.23 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $150.96.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.80 EPS. Research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Target’s payout ratio is presently 46.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on TGT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America raised their target price on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Target in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.47.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

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.