Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Target (NYSE:TGT) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on TGT. Melius Research started coverage on shares of Target in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Target from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Target from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Target currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.47.

Target Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $151.16 on Thursday. Target has a 12-month low of $105.23 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $153.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $152.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $69.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.24.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $25.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.80 earnings per share. Target’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Target will post 9.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total value of $153,130.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares in the company, valued at $1,114,173.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.13, for a total transaction of $153,130.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Target during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP bought a new stake in Target during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Target during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Target by 56.1% in the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 178 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 156.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% 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.