Barclays Boosts GAP (NYSE:GAP) Price Target to $33.00

GAP (NYSE:GAP) had its price objective increased by Barclays from $26.00 to $33.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $33.00 price target (up from $22.00) on shares of GAP in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $29.00 price target (up from $26.00) on shares of GAP in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of GAP from $19.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of GAP from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of GAP from $34.00 to $25.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $28.80.

GAP Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GAP opened at $28.39 on Tuesday. GAP has a twelve month low of $16.99 and a twelve month high of $29.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.83. The company has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a PE ratio of 13.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 2.24. 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 (NYSE:GAP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.18. GAP had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 29.03%. The business had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.07 billion. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that GAP will post 2.02 EPS for the current year.

GAP Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. GAP’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.86%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Sarah Gilligan sold 29,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.34, for a total transaction of $606,396.42. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,575.56. The trade was a 91.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 16,055 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.43, for a total transaction of $328,003.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 123,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,533,013.55. This trade represents a 11.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 228,880 shares of company stock worth $4,985,854 over the last three months. 31.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GAP. Dodge & Cox purchased a new position in GAP during the first quarter worth about $592,222,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. purchased a new position in GAP during the first quarter worth about $63,674,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in GAP in the first quarter valued at about $56,763,000. LSV Asset Management purchased a new position in GAP in the first quarter valued at about $32,655,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers purchased a new position in GAP in the first quarter valued at about $12,210,000. 58.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

GAP Company Profile

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.