Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Sells 510 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC trimmed its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,195 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 510 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $6,864,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of TGT. Tower View Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 82.8% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Target during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 200.8% in the 4th quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 361 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Target

In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total value of $495,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 30,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 346,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,115,870.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,600 shares of company stock valued at $8,819,598. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TGT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $174.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Target from $183.00 to $180.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.85.

Target Price Performance

TGT stock traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $158.35. 2,418,658 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,679,486. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.26 billion, a PE ratio of 17.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $102.93 and a 52 week high of $181.86. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $166.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.19.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The retailer reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.57. The business had revenue of $31.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 3.85%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Target Co. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Target’s payout ratio is 49.27%.

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.