Here's How Much Investing $1,000 In Target Stock 5 Years Ago Would Be Worth Today

Investors who have owned stocks since 2016 generally have experienced some big gains. In fact, the SPDR S&P 500 SPY total return in the past five years is 117.6%. But there is no question some big-name stocks performed better than others along the way.

Target’s Big Run: One company that has been a solid investment in the past five years is discount retail giant Target Corporation TGT. Not only has Target successfully fended off online competition from Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN, it has transformed its business to embrace the shift in U.S. retail sales from offline to online.

Target started the 2010s as almost an exclusively brick-and-mortar business. In 2017, the company announced Drive Up, a new service that allowed customers to order items online for in-store pickup.

By the end of 2019, Target had cracked onto the top 10 in U.S. e-commerce market share with a 1.2% share, according to eMarketer. Target’s U.S. retail e-commerce sales climbed from just $3 billion in 2016 to $6.73 billion by 2019.

At the beginning of 2016, Target shares were trading at around $72. After peaking as high as $84.14 in early 2016, fears over Amazon competition drove Target shares back down as low as $48.56. Fortunately for Target investors, that level marked the low point of the past year, and Target’s share price caught fire from there.

Target made it up to $90.39 in mid-2018 before dropping back to $60.51 late in the year after issuing disappointing holiday-season sales guidance.

Related Link: $1,000, 5 Years Later: Walmart Stock A Beacon For Investors

Target hit $100 for the first time in mid-2019 and made it as high as $130.24 prior to the 2020 pandemic.

Target In 2021, Beyond: Fortunately for Target investors, grocery demand has boomed during the health crisis. Target shares only dropped down to $94.41 during the March market sell-off and had rebounded to new all-time highs again by August. The stock has continued its momentum into 2021, soaring as high as $199.96 before pulling back to around $186.

In January, Target reported November and December same-store sales growth of 17.2%, down only slightly from its 20.7% growth in the third quarter. Comparable digital sales growth during the holiday shopping season was up 102% year-over-year.

Target investors who bought five years ago and held on have generated some impressive returns during one of the hottest market periods in recent history. In fact, $1,000 in Target stock bought in 2016 would be worth about $2,727 today, assuming reinvested dividends.

Looking ahead, analysts are expecting Target to gain even more ground in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 25 analysts covering the stock is $211, suggesting 13.1% upside from current levels.
(Photo: Target)