Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Acquires 645 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,777 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 645 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Target during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 156.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in Target during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Price Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT opened at $153.32 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $152.39 and its 200-day moving average is $150.63. The firm has a market cap of $70.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.24. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $107.13 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 21st. The retailer reported $2.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.39. Target had a net margin of 4.18% and a return on equity of 33.10%. The company had revenue of $25.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.80 earnings per share. Target’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 9.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business 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. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Target 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Target news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,210,768.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 over the last 90 days. 0.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TGT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $188.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Target from $147.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Target has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.47.

Target Company 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.