Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) Shares Acquired by Lifelong Wealth Advisors Inc.

Lifelong Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 20.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,778 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 811 shares during the quarter. Lifelong Wealth Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $499,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Target by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 21,930,569 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,964,565,000 after buying an additional 1,306,552 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,532,769,000 after buying an additional 1,358,348 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,885,015 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,332,317,000 after purchasing an additional 470,990 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $757,892,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Target by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,376,640 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $726,814,000 after purchasing an additional 754,883 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Price Performance

Target stock opened at $96.71 on Thursday. Target Corporation has a 12 month low of $87.35 and a 12 month high of $167.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.94 billion, a PE ratio of 10.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.22.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The retailer reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.35). Target had a return on equity of 25.59% and a net margin of 3.95%. The business had revenue of $24.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 13th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Target from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Target from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group reduced their target price on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, KGI Securities set a $132.00 target price on Target in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.18, for a total transaction of $4,328,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 246,453 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,703,849.54. This represents a 15.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.