Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $74.24 Million Position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 13.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 549,177 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 82,105 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $74,238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Target by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,368,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in Target by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 17,977 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,430,000 after buying an additional 3,590 shares during the last quarter. Northeast Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at $1,566,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its position in Target by 8.6% during the third 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 last quarter. Finally, Prana Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Target by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 217,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $33,834,000 after acquiring an additional 69,885 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of Target stock opened at $130.76 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $134.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.84. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.45). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.10 earnings per share. Target’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Target from $137.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Target from $156.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Target in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Target from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $157.70.

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.