Target (NYSE:TGT) Trading 0.4% Higher – Time to Buy?

Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)’s stock price shot up 0.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $131.77 and last traded at $131.26. 791,647 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 4,543,121 shares. The stock had previously closed at $130.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on TGT shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Target from $174.00 to $177.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Target in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target for the company. Finally, Roth Mkm decreased their target price on shares of Target from $157.00 to $131.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.57.

Target Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $60.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.17. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $143.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.80.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $25.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.10 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 8.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.17, for a total transaction of $997,715.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Target

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of TGT. Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Target by 4.3% during the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its holdings in Target by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 5,736 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $894,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its stake in Target by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 2,156 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Target by 20.8% in the second quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integral Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Target by 5.3% during the second quarter. Integral Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,382 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $203,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

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.