Summitry LLC Increases Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Summitry LLC lifted its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 42,150 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,036 shares during the period. Summitry LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $5,698,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nicholas Company Inc. boosted its position in Target by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 55,810 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,544,000 after purchasing an additional 9,485 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Target by 144.9% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 234,492 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $31,699,000 after purchasing an additional 138,751 shares during the period. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter worth approximately $6,459,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its position in Target by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,430,000 after buying an additional 3,590 shares during the period. Finally, Northeast Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,566,000. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TGT. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer lowered 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. KGI Securities set a $132.00 price target on Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Target from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $170.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Target from $133.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.55.

Target Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $105.37 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $48.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $101.76 and a 12 month high of $181.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $124.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The company had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict 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. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

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.