ProShare Advisors LLC Sells 154,632 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

ProShare Advisors LLC decreased its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 12.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,135,195 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 154,632 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $168,054,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Target during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP bought a new stake in Target during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of 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. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Target Stock Down 1.1 %

Target stock opened at $154.75 on Friday. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The company has a market cap of $71.59 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.90. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.98.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Daiwa America raised shares of Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. 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 report on Thursday, August 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 target price on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.68.

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.