Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Trims Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 37.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 93,964 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 56,201 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $12,702,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Target during the 3rd quarter worth $49,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Target by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 135,908 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $20,121,000 after purchasing an additional 5,548 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Target by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 3,006 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Target by 24.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,049,901 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $163,638,000 after buying an additional 208,195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Target by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 182,342 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $28,420,000 after buying an additional 10,281 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $117.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. Target Co. has a one year low of $112.53 and a one year high of $181.86. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $133.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.15.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.83%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on TGT. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Target from $129.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. HSBC downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Daiwa America downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $156.43.

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.