Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC reduced its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 61.4% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 13,453 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 21,443 shares during the quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $1,992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Little House Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target in the 1st quarter valued at $1,041,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Target by 23.6% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 642,340 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $112,686,000 after acquiring an additional 122,706 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Target by 11.4% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 65,558 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $11,618,000 after acquiring an additional 6,690 shares during the last quarter. Janney Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Target during the first quarter valued at about $13,958,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Target by 864.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 57,613 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,205,000 after acquiring an additional 51,639 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Target Trading Down 0.5 %

Target stock opened at $155.18 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $148.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $154.47. Target Co. has a 52-week low of $102.93 and a 52-week high of $181.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The business had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TGT. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Target from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.69.

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.