SG Americas Securities LLC Invests $3.52 Million in The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP)

SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 170,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,519,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rhumbline Advisers acquired a new stake in shares of GAP during the first quarter worth $12,210,000. California State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of GAP in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,953,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in GAP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,971,000. Institutional investors own 58.81% of the company's stock.

GAP Price Performance

GAP traded down $0.76 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $20.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,993,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,801,287. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The Gap, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.99 and a 12 month high of $29.29. The stock has a market cap of $7.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 2.20. The business's 50-day moving average price is $22.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.87.

GAP (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.07. GAP had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 29.03%. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.41 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.41 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that The Gap, Inc. will post 2.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GAP Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.165 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. GAP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GAP shares. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of GAP from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of GAP from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of GAP from $30.00 to $27.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of GAP from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $30.00 to $24.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of GAP from $34.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $28.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Mark Breitbard sold 3,393 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.58, for a total transaction of $66,434.94. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 133,341 shares in the company, valued at $2,610,816.78. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Katrina O'connell sold 2,365 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.59, for a total value of $46,330.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 8,503 shares in the company, valued at $166,573.77. This trade represents a 21.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 99,444 shares of company stock valued at $2,348,404 in the last 90 days. 30.56% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.