Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) Shares Bought by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 15.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,052 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,811 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $5,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners bought a new stake in shares of Target in the 1st quarter worth approximately $335,870,000. Focused Investors Fund L P bought a new position in shares of Target in the first quarter valued at $125,536,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 1st quarter valued at $107,367,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,765,496 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $312,864,000 after acquiring an additional 544,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Target by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,153,875 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $558,898,000 after acquiring an additional 470,647 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group upped their target price on Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on shares of Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Target from $200.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.69.

Target Price Performance

NYSE TGT opened at $155.29 on Tuesday. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $102.93 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $148.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.74. The firm has a market cap of $71.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. 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 (NYSE:TGT) last posted its 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 return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The firm had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.80 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is 50.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target 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.