Legato Capital Management LLC Takes $2.33 Million Position in Target Corporation $TGT

Legato Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 23,880 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,334,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in TGT. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 12.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 57,925,898 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,195,953,000 after buying an additional 6,481,560 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Target by 2.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,648,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,377,031,000 after purchasing an additional 911,964 shares during the period. Amundi grew its stake in Target by 38.6% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 1,913,883 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $170,278,000 after purchasing an additional 533,416 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Target by 17.1% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,162,050 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $311,911,000 after purchasing an additional 461,495 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec grew its stake in Target by 1,593.8% during the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 439,839 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,454,000 after purchasing an additional 413,871 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $114.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Target from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $124.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Target from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.93.

Target Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Target stock opened at $125.62 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.93. Target Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.44 and a 52 week high of $133.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $122.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $109.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.05 billion, a PE ratio of 16.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 1.01.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.24. Target had a return on equity of 22.92% and a net margin of 3.24%.The firm had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Target Corporation will post 8.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th will be issued a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 13th. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.24%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Matthew A. Liegel sold 2,053 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.19, for a total transaction of $240,591.07. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 12,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,038.17. The trade was a 14.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Target News

Here are the key news stories impacting Target this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Target’s first-quarter earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $1.71 versus $1.47 expected and revenue of $25.44 billion topping estimates. Management also said the results validate its refreshed strategy, citing 6.7% sales growth and 4.4% traffic growth, while raising its outlook. Article: TGT Q1 Earnings Call Highlights Early Strategy Gains
• Positive Sentiment: Several Wall Street firms raised their price targets after the earnings report, including DA Davidson to $155 from $140 with a buy rating, Telsey Advisory Group to $150 from $148 with an outperform rating, and Robert W. Baird to $135 from $125. These upgrades suggest analysts see more upside in Target’s recovery. Article: Analyst price target increases for Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional commentary highlighted Target’s long-term turnaround potential, with one analysis asking whether the stock could reach $175 by 2027, but the piece was largely speculative rather than based on a new fundamental catalyst. Article: Prediction: Can Target Stock Reach $175 by 2027?
• Negative Sentiment: Not all the news was upbeat: Freedom Capital downgraded Target to hold from strong-buy, and some recent articles warned that competition from Walmart and Costco, plus concerns about consumer sentiment, could pressure the turnaround if spending weakens. Article: Target downgrade and cautionary commentary

Target Profile

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.