The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP) Receives $29.25 Average Price Target from Analysts

The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $29.25.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of GAP from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on GAP from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on GAP from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Argus upgraded GAP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price on shares of GAP in a research note on Friday, March 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Horacio Barbeito sold 40,764 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.07, for a total transaction of $818,133.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,181.56. This represents a 99.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Elisabeth B. Donohue sold 3,539 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.04, for a total transaction of $74,460.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,160. This represents a 46.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 177,495 shares of company stock valued at $3,598,459. 31.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of GAP

A hedge fund recently bought a new stake in GAP stock. California State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 209,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,953,000. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.06% of GAP at the end of the most recent quarter. 58.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

GAP Stock Up 1.1 %

GAP stock opened at $20.64 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $22.27 and a 200-day moving average of $22.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. GAP has a twelve month low of $18.54 and a twelve month high of $26.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 9.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 2.38.

GAP (NYSE:GAP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.07 billion. GAP had a return on equity of 29.03% and a net margin of 5.40%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that GAP will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GAP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This is an increase from GAP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. GAP’s dividend payout ratio is 29.86%.

About GAP

Gap, Inc operates as a global apparel retail company, which offers clothing, apparel, accessories, and personal care products for men, women, and children. The firm operates through the following segments: Gap Global, Old Navy Global, Banana Republic Global, Athleta, and Other. The Gap Global segment includes apparel and accessories for men and women under the Gap brand, along with the GapKids, BabyGap, GapMaternity, GapBody, and GapFit collections.