Janus Henderson Group PLC Purchases 144,323 Shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 63.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 371,816 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 144,323 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned about 0.08% of Target worth $57,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Target during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in Target by 156.5% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 218 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Target during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Target from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $188.00 to $130.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Target in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their target price on Target from $165.00 to $130.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.30.

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 transaction, the insider now owns 123,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,418,510.67. This represents a 4.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Target Price Performance

NYSE:TGT opened at $129.13 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $59.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.17. Target Co. has a 12 month low of $120.21 and a 12 month high of $181.86. The business’s 50-day moving average is $146.84 and its 200 day moving average is $147.78.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 20th. The retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Target Co. will post 8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. Target’s payout ratio is currently 47.51%.

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.