Greenleaf Trust Trims Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Greenleaf Trust trimmed its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 10.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,189 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,908 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in Target were worth $2,448,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Target by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,527,706 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,923,428,000 after purchasing an additional 702,565 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Target by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,570,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,725,904,000 after purchasing an additional 1,529,881 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 95,980.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 18,518,448 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 1.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 80,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,762,227 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $747,699,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,900 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Stock Performance

TGT stock opened at $168.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.14. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $102.93 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $163.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.95.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its earnings results 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 company 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Target from $183.00 to $180.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of Target from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Target from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Target news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.