XTX Topco Ltd Cuts Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

XTX Topco Ltd lessened its holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 41.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,353 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 6,750 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd’s holdings in Target were worth $1,385,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Target by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,945,524 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,401,142,000 after acquiring an additional 417,818 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Target by 11.4% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,316,738 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $639,050,000 after purchasing an additional 440,307 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Target by 17.5% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $558,898,000 after purchasing an additional 470,647 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Target by 16.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,114,400 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $461,031,000 after purchasing an additional 435,229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 9.7% in the second quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,094,644 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $458,131,000 after buying an additional 272,521 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on TGT shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Daiwa America raised Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.68.

Target Stock Down 1.1 %

TGT stock opened at $154.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $148.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $155.08.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total transaction of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company 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.