Andra AP fonden Boosts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Andra AP fonden grew its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 252.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 161,800 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 115,900 shares during the quarter. Andra AP fonden’s holdings in Target were worth $23,953,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new position in Target during the second quarter worth $28,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on TGT. Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Target from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Target from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.68.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $150.59 on Tuesday. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $69.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.90, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.14.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. Target’s payout ratio is 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Target

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.