What to Expect When Target Reports Wednesday Morning
Big-box retailer Target is scheduled to release its fiscal first-quarter financial results before the markets open on Wednesday.
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT | TGT Price Prediction) is scheduled to release its fiscal first-quarter financial results before the markets open on Wednesday. The consensus estimates call for $0.68 in earnings per share (EPS) and $19.0 billion in revenue. The same period of last year reportedly had $1.53 in EPS and $17.63 billion in revenue.
In late April, the company provided preliminary data for its fiscal first quarter, after it withdrew its first-quarter guidance on March 25.
The company said that February comparable store sales were up 3.8% year over year, powered by late February traffic and sales in both its stores and digital channels as Americans stocked up on goods to see them through the coming COVID-19 lockdowns.
Traffic and sales at Target rose even more strongly beginning about the middle of March. In March, comparable store sales increased in the low double digits, reflecting mid-single-digit growth in stores and more than 100% growth in Target’s e-commerce channels. March sales jumped by 40% in both the essentials and food and beverage categories and by 20% in hardlines. Sales were down in the low single digits in the home category and by more than 30% in apparel and accessories.
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Strong sales picked up even more after mid-April, with comparable-store sales up by 5% for the first three weeks, store sales dropping by mid-teen percentages and digital sales jumping by more than 275%.
Excluding Tuesday’s move, Target stock had outperformed the S&P 500 and Dow Jones industrial average with a 2% loss year to date. In the past 52 weeks, the stock was up closer to 77%.
A few analysts weighed in on Target ahead of the report:
- BofA Securities has a Buy rating with a $145 target price.
- Morgan Stanley rates it as Equal Weight with a $105 target.
- Deutsche Bank has a Buy rating and a $121 price target.
- Nomura’s Buy rating comes with a $121 target price.
- BMO Capital Markets has an Outperform rating and a $125 target.
Target stock traded down nearly 1% on Tuesday, at $123.66 in a 52-week range of $70.71 to $130.24. The consensus price target is $121.76.
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Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.
His work has been quoted, or referenced by a number of outlets including Business Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Finance, MSN, The Motley Fool, and many other publications. A graduate of Southwestern University, he studied business with a focus on investments and has previous experience in banking and startups.
When not reading or writing the news, he is following his passion for Lacrosse, playing chess, or building solar projects with his dad.
