Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 201,668 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 47,272 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Target were worth $31,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Target by 9,940.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,001,391 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $311,937,000 after buying an additional 1,981,458 shares during the period. Boston Partners acquired a new position in Target during the 1st quarter worth about $335,870,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 711.2% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 876,531 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $129,762,000 after acquiring an additional 768,479 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Target in the 1st quarter valued at about $107,367,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in Target by 17.5% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $558,898,000 after purchasing an additional 470,647 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $153.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Target from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Target from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Target from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.47.

Target Stock Performance

TGT stock opened at $151.16 on Friday. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $105.23 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $153.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.22. The firm has a market cap of $69.93 billion, a PE ratio of 16.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.24.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.28%.

Insider Activity at Target

In other Target news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.23% 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.