Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective lowered by Piper Sandler from $156.00 to $130.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the retailer’s stock.

TGT has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Target in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 target price for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Target from $147.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.13.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $125.01 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a one year low of $120.21 and a one year high of $181.86. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $151.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.54.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Target will post 9.58 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.51%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 12.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This trade represents a 4.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock worth $8,290,995. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. TAP Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Target during the 3rd quarter worth $2,403,000. Olstein Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Target by 8.7% in the third quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 50,000 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,793,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Target by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,243,928 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $193,879,000 after buying an additional 41,394 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Target by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 217,214 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,484,000 after buying an additional 36,941 shares during the period. Finally, CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,937,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Target Company 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.