Target(US:TGT) Zacks Investment Researchยท2024-02-02 15:31Core Viewpoint - The average brokerage recommendation (ABR) for Target (TGT) is 1.98, indicating a general suggestion to buy the stock, but reliance solely on this metric may not be advisable due to potential biases in brokerage recommendations [1][2]. Brokerage Recommendation Trends for TGT - Target's ABR is derived from 30 brokerage firms, with 13 Strong Buy and 4 Buy recommendations, accounting for 43.3% and 13.3% of total recommendations respectively [1]. - Studies indicate that brokerage recommendations often lack success in guiding investors towards stocks with significant price appreciation potential [2]. - Brokerage analysts tend to exhibit a strong positive bias in their ratings, with five "Strong Buy" recommendations for every "Strong Sell" [2][3]. Zacks Rank vs. ABR - Zacks Rank is a proprietary stock rating tool that categorizes stocks based on earnings estimate revisions, providing a more reliable indicator of near-term price performance compared to ABR [3][5]. - The ABR is based solely on brokerage recommendations and may not be up-to-date, while Zacks Rank reflects timely earnings estimate revisions [5]. - The Zacks Rank for Target is currently 2 (Buy), indicating positive sentiment among analysts regarding the company's earnings prospects [6]. Investment Consideration for TGT - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Target's earnings has increased by 0.3% over the past month to $8.34, suggesting potential for stock price appreciation [6]. - The combination of the recent change in consensus estimates and other related factors has led to a favorable Zacks Rank for Target, supporting the notion that the Buy-equivalent ABR may be a useful guide for investors [6].