Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Sells 104 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management reduced its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,004 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 104 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Target were worth $285,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Target by 82.8% during the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Target by 200.8% during the fourth quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 361 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Trading Up 3.0 %

NYSE TGT opened at $164.34 on Friday. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $102.93 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The business’s fifty day moving average is $166.96 and its 200 day moving average is $146.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $76.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.68%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.27%.

Insider Transactions at Target

In other Target news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total transaction of $495,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Melissa K. Kremer sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.05, for a total value of $495,150.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,038,481.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on TGT. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Target from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $174.00 price target on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $183.00 to $180.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $125.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on shares of Target from $160.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.85.

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.