Target (NYSE:TGT) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $134.53, but opened at $128.52. Target shares last traded at $129.98, with a volume of 2,430,555 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on TGT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $184.00 to $108.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Target from $156.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets dropped 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. Hsbc Global Res cut Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $160.57.

Target Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $59.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $137.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

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

Target Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.51%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Target by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,484,252 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,530,576,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732,801 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Target by 11.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Target by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,461,456,000 after buying an additional 130,691 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Target by 6.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $647,652,000 after buying an additional 279,656 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $517,620,000 after acquiring an additional 62,916 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.