Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 204,885 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,877 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Target were worth $31,933,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in TGT. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Target during the 1st quarter valued at $77,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Target by 163.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 168,426 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,847,000 after purchasing an additional 104,529 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Target by 142.4% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 60,879 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,788,000 after buying an additional 35,759 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in shares of Target by 19.6% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 231,620 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $40,282,000 after buying an additional 37,948 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Target by 7.8% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,633 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of Target stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Target Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:TGT opened at $130.09 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $59.93 billion, a PE ratio of 13.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.24. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $120.21 and a 12-month high of $181.86. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.78.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.45). The firm had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TGT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Roth Mkm cut their price objective on Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Target from $167.00 to $139.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Target from $160.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Target in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $160.30.

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.