Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,321 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 867 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $2,894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Target by 1.6% during the third 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 in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Target by 4.6% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,570,634 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,725,904,000 after purchasing an additional 1,529,881 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 95,980.3% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,537,742 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,762,865,000 after purchasing an additional 18,518,448 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 1.0% during the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,300,283 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,371,516,000 after purchasing an additional 80,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 26.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,762,227 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $747,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,900 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

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

Target Price Performance

NYSE TGT traded down $1.53 on Tuesday, reaching $163.48. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,136,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,778,018. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The stock has a market cap of $75.48 billion, a PE ratio of 18.22, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $162.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $139.80.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 49.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on TGT. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Target from $142.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Target presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.85.

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.