The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Receives $25.86 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $25.86.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on GPS shares. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on GAP from $24.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on GAP from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on GAP from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Daiwa America raised GAP to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on GAP from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 3rd.

GAP Trading Down 2.0 %

NYSE:GPS opened at $24.70 on Friday. GAP has a fifty-two week low of $8.51 and a fifty-two week high of $30.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.26 billion, a PE ratio of 13.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 2.35. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.01.

GAP (NYSE:GPS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The apparel retailer reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.27. GAP had a return on equity of 27.57% and a net margin of 4.52%. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.01 EPS. GAP’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that GAP will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GAP Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. GAP’s payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Katrina O’connell sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total transaction of $580,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 93,809 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.14, for a total transaction of $2,639,785.26. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 141,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,978,348.78. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Katrina O’connell sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total value of $580,200.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 133,041 shares of company stock valued at $3,757,327. 30.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of GAP

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPS. Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in GAP by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 2,305,600 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $63,519,000 after purchasing an additional 285,000 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in GAP by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 367,130 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $7,677,000 after purchasing an additional 91,151 shares during the period. Polianta Ltd bought a new stake in GAP in the 4th quarter valued at $968,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in GAP by 266.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 48,820 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,021,000 after purchasing an additional 35,495 shares during the period. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its stake in GAP by 90.6% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 74,080 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $787,000 after purchasing an additional 35,223 shares during the period. 58.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

GAP Company Profile

The Gap, Inc operates as an apparel retail company. The company offers apparel, accessories, and personal care products for men, women, and children under the Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, and Athleta brands. Its products include adult apparel and accessories; and fitness and lifestyle products for use in yoga, training, sports, travel, and everyday activities for women and girls.