Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 198 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 9.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,911 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 198 shares during the period. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in shares of Target by 153.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 77,882 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,611,000 after purchasing an additional 47,144 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in Target by 13.0% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 254,622 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $28,154,000 after acquiring an additional 29,206 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its position in Target by 6.5% during the third quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 3,110 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 168.3% during the third quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 14,032 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after acquiring an additional 8,802 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its position in Target by 83.2% during the third quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 11,933 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,319,000 after acquiring an additional 5,420 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT traded up $1.32 during trading on Friday, hitting $148.04. The company had a trading volume of 12,772,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,818,235. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $152.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.33. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.02). Target had a net margin of 3.87% and a return on equity of 31.91%. The company had revenue of $24.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a $1.12 dividend. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on TGT shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Target from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $177.61.

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.