M&G Plc Sells 1,827 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

M&G Plc lessened its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 7.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,837 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,827 shares during the period. M&G Plc’s holdings in Target were worth $3,563,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the second quarter worth $25,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Target by 56.1% in the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 178 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Target in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target by 156.5% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Roth Mkm increased their target price on Target from $153.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Target from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.47.

Insider Activity at Target

In other Target news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $48,210,768.81. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Target news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was 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 owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the 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 directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. 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 three months. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

TGT stock opened at $149.79 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 $105.23 and a 1 year high of $181.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $152.39 and a 200 day moving average of $150.84. The company has a market cap of $69.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.47, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.19 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.80 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 9.54 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. Target’s payout ratio is 46.28%.

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.