The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP) Receives $28.31 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $28.07.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GAP. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of GAP in a report on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of GAP from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of GAP from $34.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup cut their target price on GAP from $32.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of GAP from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling at GAP

In related news, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 16,055 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.43, for a total value of $328,003.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 123,985 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,533,013.55. This trade represents a 11.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Elisabeth B. Donohue sold 3,539 shares of GAP stock in a transaction on 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 $84,160. The trade was a 46.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 177,495 shares of company stock worth $3,598,459 in the last ninety days. 31.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GAP

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in GAP during the 1st quarter worth about $91,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter worth about $96,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new stake in shares of GAP in the first quarter worth $1,107,000. Polianta Ltd acquired a new position in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter valued at $1,150,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in GAP during the 1st quarter worth $3,519,000. 58.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

GAP Trading Up 4.3 %

GAP stock traded up $0.86 on Monday, reaching $20.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,794,683 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,963,605. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.54. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.29. The firm has a market cap of $7.83 billion, a PE ratio of 9.62, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 2.15. GAP has a 12-month low of $16.99 and a 12-month high of $26.41.

GAP (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.07 billion. GAP had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 29.03%. As a group, research analysts forecast that GAP will post 2.02 EPS for the current year.

GAP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. This is a positive change from GAP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. GAP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.86%.

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.