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Target Corporation

TGT
40
Discount Stores · Consumer Defensive
Also trades as: 0LD8.L
Winston Score
40
Winston is serious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.
Data as of Aug 23, 2026 · filings through May 2, 2026
How the score breaks down
Quality
Mixed
Growth
Weak
Cash Flow
Strong
Stability
Strong
Valuation
Good
Dividends
Mixed

Winston Score History

The full picture

Target Corporation runs a chain of large retail stores across the United States where people shop for everyday items like groceries, clothing, electronics, home goods, and beauty products. It serves everyday consumers — families and individuals looking for a mix of affordable prices and decent quality. Target is one of the largest discount retailers in the country, known for its owned brands like Good & Gather (food) and Cat & Jack (kids' clothing), which help set it apart from competitors like Walmart and Amazon.

Target makes money by selling products directly to shoppers in its roughly 1,900 U.S. stores and through its website, keeping a portion of each sale as profit. Its store-as-fulfillment-center model — where stores handle online orders and same-day delivery — gives it an operational edge. However, Target faces real pressure from inflation-cautious consumers trading down to cheaper alternatives, and its relatively thin operating margin of 4.5% leaves little room for error if sales slow or costs rise.

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Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

-1.5% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Revenue declining

EPS Growth

-4.5% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

Insider Activity

0.3%ownership

Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$5.5B cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↑ Burn rate improving

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Revenue declining

Target Corporation's revenue is actually shrinking. In a growth stock, that removes the core investment thesis. The low Winston Score here may be warranted — unless there's a turnaround story.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
29.0%
Modest — 29.0% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
4.5%
Thin — 4.5% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
15.0%
Strong — 15.0% return on capital

ROIC between 15% and 25%. Every dollar invested in the business earns 15 to 25 cents back per year.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
+0.5%
Nearly flat sales (+0.5% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
-16.7%
Earnings shrinking (-16.7% YoY)

Earnings per share down more than 10%. Either a bad year, or a real decline.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
2/8 quarters
Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
203%
Turns 203% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
2.9%
Thin free cash flow (2.9%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
0.94
Moderate — manageable debt (0.94)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
10.69x
Comfortably covers interest (10.7x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
21.7x
no trend
Growth-priced — P/E 21.7

P/E above the market average. People are paying up for expected growth.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
+5.7
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (21.7 → 16.1)

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
2.99%
no trend
Moderate income — 2.99% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
+1.8%
no trend
Dividend flat

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