Insider Selling: The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Director Sells $68,890.32 in Stock

The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) Director Tracy Gardner sold 2,934 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.48, for a total transaction of $68,890.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 51,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,218,635.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

GAP Stock Performance

Shares of GAP stock opened at $23.86 on Thursday. The Gap, Inc. has a 12 month low of $8.58 and a 12 month high of $30.75. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $23.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.16. The firm has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.26, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 2.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

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

GAP Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. GAP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GPS shares. TD Cowen raised GAP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $28.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of GAP from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of GAP from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of GAP from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of GAP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.98.

Institutional Trading of GAP

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GPS. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of GAP by 37.2% during the first quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 1,965 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in GAP in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S acquired a new stake in GAP in the 4th quarter worth approximately $73,000. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in GAP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $207,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new position in GAP during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $197,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.81% of the company’s stock.

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.