Target (NYSE:TGT) Price Target Cut to $120.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective decreased by Stifel Nicolaus from $130.00 to $120.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a hold rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on TGT. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Hsbc Global Res cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their target price on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $145.55.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $104.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $126.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $138.47. Target has a 1 year low of $103.46 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The company has a market capitalization of $47.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. On average, analysts expect that Target will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $757,892,000. State Street Corp raised its position in Target by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Target during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $297,122,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in Target by 61.2% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,968,037 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $536,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Target by 173.2% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,369,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $369,295,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.