Target (NYSE:TGT) Stock Price Up 1.3% - Here's What Happened

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) was up 1.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $94.85 and last traded at $94.98. Approximately 1,022,246 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 5,604,637 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.78.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on TGT. DA Davidson decreased their price objective on Target from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Cfra Research lowered Target from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Roth Capital set a $122.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. KGI Securities set a $132.00 price objective on Target in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Target currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $132.37.

Target Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $128.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.28.

Target (NYSE:TGT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The retailer reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.17. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $30.83 billion. Analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. Target's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Target

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter valued at about $757,892,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $297,122,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Target by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,968,037 shares of the retailer's stock worth $536,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,275 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Target by 13.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,338,729 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,532,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358,348 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Target in the 4th quarter valued at $182,882,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.