Olstein Capital Management L.P. Decreases Stock Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Olstein Capital Management L.P. lessened its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 32.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 41,000 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 20,000 shares during the quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P.’s holdings in Target were worth $7,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Target by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,945,524 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,401,142,000 after acquiring an additional 417,818 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Target by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,447,538,000 after acquiring an additional 868,274 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Target by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,531,846 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,357,525,000 after acquiring an additional 137,180 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $759,810,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Target by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,873,399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $409,230,000 after acquiring an additional 125,489 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on TGT. Barclays increased their price target on Target from $142.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Robert W. Baird reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Guggenheim increased their price target on Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised Target from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $177.61.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:TGT traded down $0.59 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $144.80. The stock had a trading volume of 1,633,259 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,915,393. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $102.93 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $152.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.41.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The firm had revenue of $24.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. This is a boost from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.38%.

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.