Sanford C. Bernstein Issues Positive Forecast for Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its price objective lifted by Sanford C. Bernstein from $139.00 to $142.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on TGT. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Roth Mkm decreased their price target on Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $157.70.

Target Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Target stock opened at $141.10 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.65 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.16. Target has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $134.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Target will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Target by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,368,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Target by 8.6% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 119,458 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,619,000 after purchasing an additional 9,510 shares in the last quarter. Prana Capital Management LP lifted its position in Target by 47.5% during the third quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 217,081 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $33,834,000 after purchasing an additional 69,885 shares during the last quarter. Polianta Ltd grew its stake in Target by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Polianta Ltd now owns 10,300 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,392,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leibman Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter worth $2,272,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.