Viking Fund Management LLC Has $6.76 Million Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

Viking Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 11.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,000 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares during the quarter. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $6,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in Target by 8.3% during the 3rd 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 grew its stake in shares of Target by 11.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,980,381 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,555,542,000 after buying an additional 1,046,044 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Target by 1.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,414,025 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,461,456,000 after buying an additional 130,691 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Target by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,374,851 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $647,652,000 after acquiring an additional 279,656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Target by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,321,055 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $517,620,000 after acquiring an additional 62,916 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Up 2.7 %

TGT stock opened at $137.28 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $135.37 and its 200-day moving average is $145.01. Target Co. has a twelve month low of $120.21 and a twelve month high of $181.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.16.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly 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). Target had a net margin of 4.06% and a return on equity of 31.11%. The firm 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 business earned $2.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Target Co. will post 8.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Target Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of $1.12 per share. This represents a $4.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Target’s payout ratio is 47.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Daiwa America downgraded Target from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Target in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $168.00 price objective for the company. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Target in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Target from $129.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.23.

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.