Target (NYSE:TGT) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Hsbc Global Res

Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Target (NYSE:TGT) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on TGT. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Target from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Guggenheim dropped their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm dropped their target price on Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.13.

Target Trading Up 2.8 %

Target stock opened at $125.01 on Wednesday. Target has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $181.86. The company has a market capitalization of $57.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $151.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $149.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Target will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.51%.

Insider Activity

In other Target news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of Target 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total value 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. The trade was a 4.89 % 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 worth $8,290,995 over the last 90 days. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cynosure Group LLC increased its stake in Target by 4.3% in the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its holdings in shares of Target by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $894,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its position in shares of Target by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Target by 20.8% in the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integral Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in Target by 5.3% in the second quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,382 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.