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Target (TGT) Ascends While Market Falls: Some Facts to Note

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Target (TGT - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $109.79, moving +1.07% from the previous trading session. This change outpaced the S&P 500's 0.53% loss on the day. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.09%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1%.

Coming into today, shares of the retailer had gained 11.22% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector gained 5.07%, while the S&P 500 gained 2.06%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Target in its upcoming release. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.16, reflecting a 10.37% decrease from the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $30.56 billion, down 1.14% from the year-ago period.

TGT's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $7.3 per share and revenue of $104.89 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -17.61% and -1.57%, respectively.

Investors should also take note of any recent adjustments to analyst estimates for Target. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, running from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), holds an admirable track record of superior performance, independently audited, with #1 stocks contributing an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has shifted 0.04% upward. At present, Target boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Looking at its valuation, Target is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 14.89. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 29.85, so one might conclude that Target is trading at a discount comparatively.

It is also worth noting that TGT currently has a PEG ratio of 11.82. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. TGT's industry had an average PEG ratio of 3.32 as of yesterday's close.

The Retail - Discount Stores industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 20, this industry ranks in the top 9% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.


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