Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Has $1.17 Million Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,174 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,165,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tower View Wealth Management LLC raised 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 in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Target

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Target from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Target from $160.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Target from $180.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Target from $157.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

Target Trading Up 0.2 %

TGT opened at $158.40 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $166.63 and its 200-day moving average is $145.54. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $73.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Target Dividend Announcement

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

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.