First Bank & Trust Has $336,000 Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

First Bank & Trust lessened its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,895 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 74 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust’s holdings in Target were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Target by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,945,524 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,401,142,000 after acquiring an additional 417,818 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Target by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 10,163,864 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,447,538,000 after acquiring an additional 868,274 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Target by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 9,531,846 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,357,525,000 after acquiring an additional 137,180 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Target during the 4th quarter worth $759,810,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Target by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,873,399 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $409,230,000 after acquiring an additional 125,489 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TGT shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Target from $190.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Target from $195.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Target from $191.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $177.61.

Target Price Performance

Shares of TGT stock opened at $148.04 on Friday. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $102.93 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $152.97 and its 200-day moving average is $153.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The retailer reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.02). Target had a return on equity of 31.91% and a net margin of 3.87%. The company had revenue of $24.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.05 earnings per share. Target’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. This is a positive change from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.10. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.38%.

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.