Carret Asset Management LLC Buys 380 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Carret Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,404 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the quarter. Target comprises about 1.0% of Carret Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $7,606,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Target by 1.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 44,527,706 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,923,428,000 after acquiring an additional 702,565 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in Target by 26.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,762,227 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $747,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,415,900 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Target by 2.7% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,146,067 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $569,001,000 after buying an additional 134,262 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Target by 8.8% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 3,569,969 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $394,739,000 after buying an additional 287,748 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Target by 3.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,469,168 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $383,586,000 after buying an additional 127,491 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on TGT shares. TheStreet raised Target from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Target from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. HSBC raised Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $140.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Target from $142.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.85.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.52, for a total value of $7,538,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 346,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,115,870.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Christina Hennington sold 4,600 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.88, for a total value of $786,048.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 38,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,576,658.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,600 shares of company stock worth $8,819,598. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Target Price Performance

NYSE:TGT traded down $1.14 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $165.37. 2,630,551 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,722,639. The company has a market capitalization of $76.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.14. Target Co. has a 1-year low of $102.93 and a 1-year high of $181.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $164.45 and a 200 day moving average of $142.30.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $1.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. Target’s payout ratio is 49.27%.

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.