Evercore ISI Cuts Target (NYSE:TGT) Price Target to $130.00

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its target price cut by Evercore ISI from $165.00 to $130.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an in-line rating on the retailer’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Roth Mkm decreased their price target on Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $147.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.13.

Target Price Performance

NYSE TGT opened at $125.01 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $151.27 and its 200-day moving average is $149.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $57.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Target will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. This trade represents a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in Target by 8.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 9,940.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,001,391 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $311,937,000 after buying an additional 1,981,458 shares during the period. Boston Partners bought a new position in Target in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $335,870,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its position in Target by 173.2% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,369,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $369,295,000 after buying an additional 1,502,200 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in Target by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.