Ballast Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Ballast Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 10.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,946 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,225 shares during the period. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $1,750,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,368,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in shares of Target by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 119,458 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,619,000 after acquiring an additional 9,510 shares during the period. Prana Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Target by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 217,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,834,000 after purchasing an additional 69,885 shares in the last quarter. Leibman Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Target in the 4th quarter worth $2,272,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Target during the third quarter valued at $967,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 0.3 %

TGT opened at $133.62 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $136.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.14. The company has a market capitalization of $61.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.16. Target Co. has a 52 week low of $120.21 and a 52 week high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on TGT. HSBC downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Target from $129.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Daiwa America cut shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.23.

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.