GAP (NYSE:GPS) Price Target Raised to $25.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

GAP (NYSE:GPS) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $24.00 to $25.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the apparel retailer’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 17.10% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on GPS. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of GAP from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of GAP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on GAP to $23.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. KGI Securities increased their price target on GAP from $9.10 to $25.20 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on GAP from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.95.

GAP Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GPS opened at $21.35 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.52. The stock has a market cap of $7.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 2.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. GAP has a 12 month low of $7.22 and a 12 month high of $28.59.

GAP (NYSE:GPS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The apparel retailer reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $4.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.22 billion. GAP had a net margin of 3.37% and a return on equity of 22.56%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.75) earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that GAP will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at GAP

In other news, insider Julie Gruber sold 9,414 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.94, for a total value of $263,027.16. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other GAP news, insider Julie Gruber sold 9,414 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.94, for a total value of $263,027.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,668.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sarah Gilligan sold 29,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.58, for a total transaction of $664,416.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,697 shares in the company, valued at $38,318.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 266,723 shares of company stock valued at $6,886,765 over the last 90 days. 30.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of GAP

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of GAP by 317.5% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,793 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 2,124 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in GAP during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in GAP during the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in GAP in the 3rd quarter valued at about $142,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GAP in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $197,000. 58.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About GAP

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.