Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 20.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,085,847 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,134,319 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.76% of Target worth $1,093,045,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nicholas Company Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,544,000 after purchasing an additional 9,485 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 144.9% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $31,699,000 after acquiring an additional 138,751 shares in the last quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,459,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Target by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,430,000 after acquiring an additional 3,590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northeast Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,566,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on TGT shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective (down from $131.00) on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $122.00 price target on Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.40.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT opened at $103.63 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $47.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $122.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $101.76 and a 1 year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Target 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.