Target (NYSE:TGT) Price Target Lowered to $130.00 at Evercore ISI

Target (NYSE:TGT) had its target price reduced by Evercore ISI from $165.00 to $130.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an in-line rating on the retailer’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on TGT. UBS Group increased their price target on Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. HSBC downgraded Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $162.13.

Target Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of TGT opened at $125.01 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The business has a fifty day moving average of $151.27 and a 200 day moving average of $149.54. The company has a market cap of $57.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. Target has a 52-week low of $120.21 and a 52-week high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Target’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.10 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Target will post 9.58 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Target’s payout ratio is 47.51%.

Insider Activity at Target

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,276 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,114,173.88. This represents a 12.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 303,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,210,768.81. This represents a 12.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995 in the last three months. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Target

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Target during the second quarter worth $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Target during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Target in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its stake 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 purchasing 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.