R Squared Ltd Makes New $582,000 Investment in Target Corporation $TGT

R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 4,806 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $582,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Target during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Target during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Target in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its position in Target by 192.0% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 292 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Target during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.73% of the company’s stock.

Target Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE TGT traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $127.01. 944,107 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,755,556. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.98. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $128.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.93. Target Corporation has a 52 week low of $83.44 and a 52 week high of $142.82.

Target (NYSE:TGT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 20th. The retailer reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.24. Target had a return on equity of 22.92% and a net margin of 3.24%.The business had revenue of $25.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $24.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.30 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Target has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-8.500 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Target Corporation will post 8.35 EPS for the current year.

Target Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. This is a boost from Target’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.14. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. Target’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Target news, insider Cara A. Sylvester sold 10,000 shares of Target stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.89, for a total value of $1,258,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,930 shares in the company, valued at $5,782,127.70. The trade was a 17.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Target from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Target from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Argus set a $150.00 price target on Target in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Target from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Target from $120.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $130.64.

About Target

Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) is a U.S.-based general merchandise retailer headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The company operates a network of full-line and small-format stores across the United States alongside a national e-commerce platform and mobile app. Target’s retail assortment spans apparel, home goods, electronics, groceries and household essentials, plus beauty, baby and pet categories. The firm complements national brands with a portfolio of owned and exclusive labels and partnerships that help differentiate its merchandise assortment.

Target traces its roots to the Dayton Company, founded by George Dayton in 1902; the Target discount chain was launched in 1962 and the parent company later adopted the Target Corporation name.