Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Sold by KRS Capital Management LLC

KRS Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 17.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,139 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 452 shares during the quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in TGT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Target by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,945,524 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,401,142,000 after purchasing an additional 417,818 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Target by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,447,538,000 after purchasing an additional 868,274 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Target by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,531,846 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,357,525,000 after purchasing an additional 137,180 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $759,810,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Target by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,873,399 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $409,230,000 after purchasing an additional 125,489 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. TheStreet upgraded Target from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Target from $209.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Target in a report on Monday, June 3rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $116.00 target price for the company. Citigroup upgraded Target from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $177.61.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT traded up $1.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $148.04. 12,772,526 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,818,235. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $152.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $153.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $102.93 and a 1 year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $24.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.52 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $1.12 dividend. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.38%.

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.