American Century Companies Inc. Cuts Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

American Century Companies Inc. reduced its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 46.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 820,022 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 699,872 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Target were worth $110,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp boosted its position in Target by 8.3% during the third 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 in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Target by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Target by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,461,456,000 after acquiring an additional 130,691 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Target by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,832,585 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $518,089,000 after acquiring an additional 234,409 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Target by 1.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $517,620,000 after acquiring an additional 62,916 shares during the period. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Target Stock Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $104.29 on Monday. Target Co. has a fifty-two week low of $101.76 and a fifty-two week high of $181.86. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $125.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $137.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.06, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.18.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly 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. The business had revenue of $30.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.83 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. Equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. Target’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TGT has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Target from $145.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Target from $146.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on Target from $150.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Target from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.55.

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.