Target (NYSE:TGT) Releases Q4 Earnings Guidance

Target (NYSE:TGT) issued an update on its fourth quarter earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $1.90-2.60 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.23. Target also updated its Q4 2023 guidance to $1.90-$2.60 EPS.

Target Trading Up 3.1 %

NYSE TGT opened at $110.64 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Target has a 52 week low of $102.93 and a 52 week high of $181.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.07 billion, a PE ratio of 15.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $112.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.69.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 15th. The retailer reported $2.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.62. Target had a net margin of 3.12% and a return on equity of 29.43%. The business had revenue of $25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.54 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Target will post 7.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 14th. Target’s payout ratio is 60.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on TGT. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on shares of Target from $162.00 to $145.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 10th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Target from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Target from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 26th. Roth Mkm reiterated a neutral rating and issued a $156.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Wednesday, August 16th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Target from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $155.84.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.70, for a total value of $3,921,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now 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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp grew its stake in Target by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,570,634 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,725,904,000 after acquiring an additional 1,529,881 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Target by 95,980.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 18,537,742 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,762,865,000 after acquiring an additional 18,518,448 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Target by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,300,283 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,371,516,000 after acquiring an additional 80,027 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Target by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,481,880 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $966,059,000 after acquiring an additional 183,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $725,870,000. 78.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Target

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.