Cetera Investment Advisers Sells 13,676 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Cetera Investment Advisers decreased its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 16.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 70,730 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 13,676 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Target were worth $9,329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aspire Private Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 1st quarter worth approximately $21,129,916,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 1st quarter valued at $341,198,000. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE acquired a new position in Target in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on TGT shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Target from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 17th. HSBC started coverage on Target in a report on Friday, September 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $140.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on Target from $163.00 to $142.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 11th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on Target from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their target price on Target from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 19th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.70, for a total value of $3,921,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 399,669 shares in the company, valued at $52,236,738.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 17.8 %

Shares of TGT stock opened at $130.46 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $60.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.92, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $112.56 and a 200-day moving average of $127.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.70.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 60.44%.

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.