GAP (NYSE:GAP) Stock Rating Upgraded by Argus

GAP (NYSE:GAP) was upgraded by research analysts at Argus to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group upgraded GAP from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $41.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of GAP from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of GAP in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Telsey Advisory Group upgraded GAP from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $32.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of GAP in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $30.15.

GAP Stock Performance

NYSE GAP opened at $27.10 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $10.08 billion, a PE ratio of 12.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.31. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $26.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.45. GAP has a twelve month low of $16.99 and a twelve month high of $29.29.

GAP (NYSE:GAP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 25th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $3.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.90 billion. GAP had a net margin of 5.57% and a return on equity of 24.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that GAP will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at GAP

In other GAP news, Director Elisabeth B. Donohue sold 3,000 shares of GAP stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.11, for a total value of $81,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $27,110. The trade was a 75.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Julie Gruber sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.00, for a total value of $840,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 37,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,047,060. This trade represents a 44.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 1,349,044 shares of company stock valued at $36,857,065 in the last ninety days. 30.56% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GAP

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GAP. LSV Asset Management increased its position in GAP by 101.0% in the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 3,184,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,453,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600,041 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of GAP by 2.5% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 607,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,249,000 after purchasing an additional 15,053 shares during the period. CX Institutional bought a new stake in shares of GAP during the third quarter valued at about $6,053,000. 111 Capital acquired a new stake in GAP in the second quarter worth about $353,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in GAP by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,899,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,239,000 after buying an additional 145,427 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.81% of the company’s stock.

About GAP

Gap Inc is a global specialty retailer renowned for its portfolio of apparel and accessories brands, including Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy and Athleta. The company designs, sources and markets clothing across a broad price range and style spectrum, catering to men, women and children. Its offerings extend from everyday wardrobe essentials such as denim, tees and outerwear to performance and lifestyle pieces, reflecting each brand’s distinct identity and price point.

Founded in San Francisco in 1969 by Donald and Doris Fisher, Gap Inc has grown into one of the world’s largest apparel companies.