Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Sells 16,491 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lessened its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 52.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,074 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 16,491 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in Target were worth $2,349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Target by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,647,000 after acquiring an additional 1,551 shares during the period. Hilton Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 1.5% in the third quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC now owns 42,924 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,690,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Bancshares Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Target during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,302,000. Premier Fund Managers Ltd purchased a new stake in Target during the 3rd quarter worth about $6,886,000. Finally, Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. boosted its stake in Target by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. now owns 2,610 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Target

In other Target news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This trade represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were 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 approximately $1,114,173.88. This trade represents a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995 over the last ninety days. 0.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $130.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $177.53.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $156.00 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $152.84 and a 200 day moving average of $150.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.12, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.24. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $128.37 and a 52 week high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The company had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.10 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s payout ratio is presently 46.28%.

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.