Dearborn Partners LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Dearborn Partners LLC reduced its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 13.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,394 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 524 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $459,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Channing Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth $8,866,000. Morton Community Bank boosted its holdings in Target by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Morton Community Bank now owns 21,176 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,863,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Target by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 13,230 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,788,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its stake in Target by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 63,780 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,622,000 after buying an additional 3,937 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 27.8% during the 4th quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 52,224 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,060,000 after buying an additional 11,351 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $112.88 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.97, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average of $131.18 and a 200 day moving average of $140.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $111.84 and a 1-year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TGT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Hsbc Global Res cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Target from $132.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Target from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.87.

About Target

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.