NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 05:20 ET — Premarket
- Target shares were up 0.3% in premarket trading at $99.87.
- Investors stayed focused on a report that activist fund Toms Capital Investment Management built a stake in the retailer.
- Traders are watching for details on the activist’s plans as Target heads into a CEO transition.
Target shares edged higher in premarket trading on Monday, extending attention on the retailer after news of an activist investor stake drove a late-week rally.
The move matters because it adds pressure on Target’s turnaround effort as the company prepares for a leadership change and tries to revive demand after a prolonged sales slump.
Target was up 0.3% at $99.87 as of 5:30 a.m. ET, according to market data on Public.com. The stock last closed at $99.55.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that New York-based Toms Capital Investment Management (TCIM) had made a “significant” investment in Target, without disclosing the size of the stake or what it wants the company to do. Financial Times+1
Target told Reuters it maintains regular dialogue with the investment community and that its top priority is getting back to growth. TCIM did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Target’s stock has lost more than 28% of its value this year, Reuters reported, after the company posted three straight quarters of falling comparable sales — sales at established stores and online that investors track as a gauge of underlying demand.
The activist news lands ahead of Chief Operating Officer Michael Fiddelke taking over as CEO in February, while current CEO Brian Cornell is set to become executive chairman — a governance setup that has drawn scrutiny from some shareholders.
Nonprofit shareholder group the Accountability Board said the TCIM position shows investors are “hungry for change,” after it filed a proposal urging Target to appoint an independent chairman. Reuters
“Financial games and monetization do not take Target in the right direction,” Neil Saunders, managing director at retail research firm GlobalData, wrote in an email. Reuters
Target has tried to reassure investors with plans to spend an additional $1 billion in 2026 on new stores, remodels and improvements to its digital business, Reuters reported. The company has also cut 1,800 corporate roles as part of a restructuring.
The company’s real estate footprint remains in focus for investors weighing what an activist might target. Target owns about 75% of its real estate, including the land, UBS analyst Michael Lasser estimated, Reuters said.
TCIM is a lesser-known name in retail activism, but Reuters said it took a stake in Tylenol maker Kenvue ahead of its sale to Kimberly-Clark last month and has pushed for changes at Kellanova and U.S. Steel.
Target has faced activists before, including a 2009 proxy battle with Pershing Square’s Bill Ackman over a proposed real-estate spinoff that shareholders rejected, Reuters reported.
Investors are now watching for any SEC filing that could spell out TCIM’s ownership and intentions, alongside any signals from Target’s board about strategy, governance and how it plans to compete on price and essentials against larger peers such as Walmart and Amazon.
Target’s investor relations site currently lists no future events scheduled, leaving the next concrete catalyst tied to company disclosures and the run-up to the CEO handover.
