GAP (NYSE:GPS) Upgraded at Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of GAP (NYSE:GPS) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat reports. Bank of America currently has $25.00 target price on the apparel retailer’s stock, up from their previous target price of $18.50.

GPS has been the subject of several other reports. Daiwa America upgraded GAP to a moderate buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of GAP from $17.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of GAP from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of GAP from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on GAP from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $26.51.

GAP Trading Down 6.5 %

Shares of NYSE:GPS opened at $21.70 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $23.97 and a 200 day moving average of $22.42. The company has a market cap of $8.14 billion, a PE ratio of 12.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 2.38. GAP has a 12-month low of $9.38 and a 12-month high of $30.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

GAP (NYSE:GPS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 30th. The apparel retailer reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. GAP had a net margin of 4.52% and a return on equity of 27.57%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.01 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that GAP will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

GAP Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. GAP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

Insider Transactions at GAP

In related news, CFO Katrina O’connell sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total transaction of $580,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Katrina O’connell sold 20,000 shares of GAP stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.01, for a total transaction of $580,200.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Tracy Gardner sold 2,934 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.48, for a total transaction of $68,890.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 51,901 shares in the company, valued at $1,218,635.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,132 shares of company stock worth $654,003. 30.81% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GAP

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GPS. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of GAP by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 263,675 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $5,513,000 after acquiring an additional 3,109 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in GAP by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 41,265 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $863,000 after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the last quarter. Pinkerton Retirement Specialists LLC bought a new position in GAP in the fourth quarter worth about $614,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of GAP by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 367,130 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $7,677,000 after buying an additional 91,151 shares in the last quarter. 58.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

GAP Company Profile

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.