Guggenheim Has Lowered Expectations for Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective reduced by Guggenheim from $180.00 to $145.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the retailer’s stock.

TGT has been the subject of several other research reports. Citigroup downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $188.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.13.

Target Trading Up 2.8 %

NYSE:TGT opened at $125.01 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $57.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $151.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $149.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Target will post 9.58 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. This represents a 12.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TGT. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its position in shares of Target by 156.5% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during 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.