Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 2,481 Shares of The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its holdings in The Gap, Inc. (NYSE:GPS) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,744 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,481 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in GAP were worth $960,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in GAP by 12.2% in the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 8,561 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in GAP by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 56,444 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $637,000 after acquiring an additional 1,447 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in GAP by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 114,213 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $938,000 after acquiring an additional 2,005 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in GAP by 34.9% in the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 12,100 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $170,000 after acquiring an additional 3,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in GAP by 208.4% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 6,923 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 4,678 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of GAP from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 25th. Barclays raised shares of GAP from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $9.00 to $13.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on shares of GAP in a report on Friday, August 25th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of GAP in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of GAP from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, GAP presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.92.

GAP Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE GPS opened at $11.58 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.96. The Gap, Inc. has a one year low of $7.22 and a one year high of $15.49. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $9.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.84.

GAP (NYSE:GPS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 24th. The apparel retailer reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.58 billion. GAP had a return on equity of 5.06% and a net margin of 0.71%. GAP’s revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Gap, Inc. will post 0.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GAP Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 4th will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 3rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.18%. GAP’s dividend payout ratio is presently 206.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Horacio Barbeito sold 154,599 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.26, for a total value of $1,586,185.74. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Horacio Barbeito sold 154,599 shares of GAP stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.26, for a total transaction of $1,586,185.74. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Katrina O’connell sold 24,509 shares of GAP stock in a transaction on Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.36, for a total value of $253,913.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 30.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About GAP

The Gap, Inc operates as an apparel retail company. The company offers apparel, accessories, and personal care products for men, women, and children under the Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, and Athleta brands. Its products include denim and khakis; eyewear, jewelry, shoes, handbags, and fragrances; and fitness and lifestyle products for use in yoga, training, sports, travel, and everyday activities for women and girls.