Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC Cuts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC lowered its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 24.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,492 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,757 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,324,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Target by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $647,652,000 after buying an additional 279,656 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 11.4% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,316,738 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $639,050,000 after acquiring an additional 440,307 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Target by 17.5% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $558,898,000 after purchasing an additional 470,647 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Target by 16.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,114,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $461,031,000 after purchasing an additional 435,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Target by 9.7% during the second quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,094,644 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $458,131,000 after purchasing an additional 272,521 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $150.84 on Friday. Target Co. has a one year low of $105.23 and a one year high of $181.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $153.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $151.32. The firm has a market cap of $69.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.24.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.80 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.53 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. TD Cowen increased their price target on Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Target in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.47.

About Target

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.