Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Takes $378,000 Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,796 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $378,000.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Target during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Target by 175.3% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Target by 110.7% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer cut their target price on Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Target from $130.00 to $120.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Target from $166.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Target has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $140.24.

Target Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Target stock opened at $95.70 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $119.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $134.73. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $90.62 and a 1 year high of $173.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market capitalization of $43.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.15, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.68%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.56%.

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.