Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Has $10.38 Million Stake in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its position in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 66,594 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,385 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Target were worth $10,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Target in the third quarter valued at about $6,370,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target by 6.1% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 14,466 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,255,000 after acquiring an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Target by 2.2% in the third quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 11,271 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,757,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Target during the third quarter worth approximately $153,000. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Target by 7.1% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 23,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,647,000 after purchasing an additional 1,551 shares during the last quarter. 79.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Target Stock Down 21.2 %

Target stock opened at $121.73 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $152.33 and a 200-day moving average of $150.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.08 billion, a PE ratio of 12.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.24.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last announced its 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). The company had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.87 billion. Target had a return on equity of 33.10% and a net margin of 4.18%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.10 earnings per share. Target’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Target Co. will post 9.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The company 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 $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Target from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Daiwa America upgraded Target to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Target from $147.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Target from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.90.

Insider Activity at Target

In other news, insider Brian C. Cornell sold 45,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.67, for a total value of $7,140,150.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 303,843 shares in the company, valued at $48,210,768.81. This trade represents a 12.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Richard H. Gomez sold 6,348 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,418,510.67. The trade was a 4.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,348 shares of company stock valued at $8,290,995. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.