Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Has $32.53 Million Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio decreased its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 208,735 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,385 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Target were worth $32,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in Target by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its position in shares of Target by 1.2% in the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $894,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp boosted its stake in Target by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Beacon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 20.8% in the second quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, Integral Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Target by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,382 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value of $997,715.16. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TGT has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Target from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $170.00 to $130.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Target in a report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.30.

Target Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE:TGT opened at $135.24 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $145.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $147.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $120.21 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.17.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

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.