RNC Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT)

RNC Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Target Co. (NYSE:TGT) by 23.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,944 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,059 shares during the quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Target were worth $2,155,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Leo Wealth LLC raised its stake in Target by 153.0% in the fourth quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 4,357 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 2,635 shares in the last quarter. Consolidated Portfolio Review Corp purchased a new stake in Target in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $300,000. Telos Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Target by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,070 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in Target by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 66,553 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,996,000 after acquiring an additional 9,680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Target during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $942,000. 79.73% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

TGT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Target from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. HSBC cut shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $138.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Target from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $184.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Target from $180.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Target from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $157.70.

Target Price Performance

TGT opened at $134.59 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $135.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $144.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $61.67 billion, a PE ratio of 14.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.15. Target Co. has a 1 year low of $120.21 and a 1 year high of $181.86.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last posted its quarterly 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). Target had a return on equity of 31.11% and a net margin of 4.06%. The company had revenue of $25.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $25.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.10 EPS. Target’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Target Co. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Target Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $1.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. Target’s payout ratio is 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.