UMB Bank n.a. Lowers Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

UMB Bank n.a. decreased its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 38.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,683 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 15,306 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Target were worth $3,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Community Bank of Raymore increased its holdings in shares of Target by 36.6% in the 4th quarter. Community Bank of Raymore now owns 4,850 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $656,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $1,453,000. Lincoln Capital LLC bought a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $210,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter valued at about $4,859,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Target by 23.1% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 747 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on TGT. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Melius Research began coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Target in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.23.

Target Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $133.62 on Tuesday. Target Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.17, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $136.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $145.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Target 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.