SG Americas Securities LLC Purchases 686,790 Shares of Target Corporation $TGT

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) by 102.1% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,359,679 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 686,790 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $164,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $587,903,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Target in the 4th quarter valued at $257,571,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 243.8% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,870,210 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $280,563,000 after buying an additional 2,035,298 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of Target by 6,639.1% during the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,912,963 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $186,992,000 after buying an additional 1,884,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Target by 104.7% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 65,505 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,403,000 after buying an additional 1,448,146 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE TGT opened at $130.82 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $59.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.00. Target Corporation has a twelve month low of $83.44 and a twelve month high of $137.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business’s fifty day moving average is $126.43 and its 200 day moving average is $115.16.

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

Target Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This is an increase from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. Target’s payout ratio is currently 60.24%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total value of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. This trade represents a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on TGT shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Target from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Target from $132.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Target from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Freedom Capital downgraded shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Target from $148.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Target currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.11.

About Target

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.