Goldman Sachs analyst Kate McShane maintained a Buy rating on Target (TGT – Research Report) yesterday and set a price target of $166.00.
Kate McShane has given her Buy rating due to a combination of factors including Target’s strong fourth-quarter earnings performance, which exceeded both Goldman Sachs and consensus estimates. The company reported an EPS of $2.41, surpassing the expected $2.30, and demonstrated a positive same-store sales growth of 1.5%, slightly above the consensus of 1.3%. This growth was driven by an increase in customer traffic, despite a slight decline in ticket size.
Additionally, Target’s e-commerce segment showed significant growth, with an 8.7% increase in comps, highlighting the success of their same-day delivery services. Although the company introduced a modest FY25 guidance with a net sales growth of 1% and flat same-store sales, the anticipated operating margin increase and EPS range of $8.80 to $9.80 suggest potential for profitability. These factors, along with a higher-than-expected gross margin and efficient cost management, underpin McShane’s positive outlook on Target’s stock.
In another report released yesterday, Jefferies also reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a $150.00 price target.
TGT’s price has also changed moderately for the past six months – from $152.480 to $117.140, which is a -23.18% drop .