GAP (NYSE:GAP) Stock Price Down 5% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• GAP's stock price decreased by 5% during trading, reaching a low of $23.00, with 4.4 million shares traded, significantly lower than its average volume of 9.2 million shares.
• Analysts have lowered their price targets for GAP, with Citigroup and Jefferies both setting a target of $22.00, and Zacks Research downgraded the stock to a "strong sell".
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 per share, with a yield of 2.9%, payable on October 29th to investors of record on October 8th.

Shares of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) were down 5% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $23.00 and last traded at $23.03. Approximately 4,411,169 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 52% from the average daily volume of 9,221,270 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on GAP shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on GAP from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on GAP from $27.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on GAP from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on GAP from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on GAP from $29.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GAP has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.47.

GAP Trading Up 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 2.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $21.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.77.

GAP (NYSE:GAP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 28th. The company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.02. GAP had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 27.04%. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. GAP has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that The Gap, Inc. will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GAP Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 29th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.165 per share. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 8th. GAP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.21%.

Insider Transactions at GAP

In related news, Director William Sydney Fisher sold 243,064 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.82, for a total transaction of $5,789,784.48. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,453,453 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,261,250.46. This trade represents a 6.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 31.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of GAP

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of GAP in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of GAP in the 1st quarter worth approximately $75,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of GAP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $80,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators bought a new stake in GAP in the first quarter valued at $81,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd bought a new position in shares of GAP during the first quarter valued at $82,000. 58.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.