LSV Asset Management Acquires New Position in The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP)

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management has acquired a new stake in The Gap, Inc., purchasing approximately 1,584,436 shares valued at about $32.7 million, which represents 0.42% of the company's stock.
• The company's recent earnings report showed earnings per share of $0.51, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.44, with a quarterly revenue of $3.46 billion.
• The Gap, Inc. announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 3.5% and a payout ratio of 28.57%.

LSV Asset Management bought a new position in The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,584,436 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,655,000. LSV Asset Management owned 0.42% of GAP as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GAP. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in GAP in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter valued at $75,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter valued at $81,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter valued at $91,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter valued at $96,000. 58.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on GAP shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of GAP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of GAP from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of GAP from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of GAP from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of GAP from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, GAP presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $27.93.

GAP Stock Down 1.1%

GAP stock traded down $0.22 during trading on Friday, reaching $19.89. The stock had a trading volume of 3,562,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,953,206. The Gap, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.99 and a 1-year high of $29.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $7.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.62, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 2.15. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $21.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.02.

GAP (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. GAP had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.86%. The firm's revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Gap, Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current year.

GAP Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 9th. GAP's dividend payout ratio is 28.57%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 51,385 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.00, for a total value of $1,387,395.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 123,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,347,595. This represents a 29.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 30.56% of the company's stock.

About GAP

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.