Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 27.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 439,875 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 164,422 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.10% of Target worth $59,462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Target during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 175.3% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 256 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target by 110.7% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 257 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TGT has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Target from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Target from $146.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Target from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.40.

Target Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of TGT opened at $103.63 on Friday. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $101.76 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $122.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $136.46. The company has a market capitalization of $47.21 billion, a PE ratio of 10.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.83 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.32%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

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.