Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 5.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,563 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 497 shares during the quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. New England Research & Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Target by 274.5% during the 2nd quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. now owns 13,200 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,741,000 after acquiring an additional 9,675 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in shares of Target by 5.0% during the second quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 149,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $19,771,000 after purchasing an additional 7,183 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division grew its stake in Target by 1.5% in the second quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 67,094 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,850,000 after purchasing an additional 974 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Target in the first quarter worth $680,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group raised its holdings in Target by 210.7% in the first quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 1,600 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. 78.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.70, for a total transaction of $3,921,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 399,669 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,236,738.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:TGT traded up $0.95 during trading on Thursday, reaching $123.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 823,103 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,370,379. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.18 billion, a PE ratio of 16.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.01. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $120.75 and a 12 month high of $181.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $129.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.68.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 16th. The retailer reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.39. Target had a return on equity of 29.43% and a net margin of 3.12%. The firm had revenue of $24.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TGT has been the topic of several research reports. TheStreet lowered shares of Target from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Friday, June 16th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Target from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Friday, September 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Target from $155.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 7th. Raymond James downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 26th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Target from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 17th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Target presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $159.21.

Target 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.