GAP (NYSE:GPS) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

Stock analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of GAP (NYSE:GPS) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday. The brokerage set a “buy” rating on the apparel retailer’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on GPS. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of GAP from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price objective on GAP from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Daiwa America raised GAP to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of GAP from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of GAP from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $29.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GAP has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $27.08.

GAP Price Performance

NYSE GPS opened at $24.55 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.50. The business’s fifty day moving average is $23.22 and its 200 day moving average is $22.94. The company has a market capitalization of $9.21 billion, a PE ratio of 13.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 2.38. GAP has a fifty-two week low of $9.38 and a fifty-two week high of $30.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other GAP news, Director Tracy Gardner sold 2,934 shares of GAP stock in a transaction on Monday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.48, for a total transaction of $68,890.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 51,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,218,635.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 30.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GAP

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of GAP by 35.4% in the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 739,855 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $17,675,000 after acquiring an additional 193,248 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in GAP by 179.1% in the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 5,484 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,519 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in GAP by 1.3% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 589,811 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $14,091,000 after purchasing an additional 7,587 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in GAP by 3.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,469,693 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $59,001,000 after purchasing an additional 86,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of GAP by 32.6% during the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 3,056,100 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $73,010,000 after buying an additional 750,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 58.81% of the company’s stock.

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 adult apparel and accessories; and fitness and lifestyle products for use in yoga, training, sports, travel, and everyday activities for women and girls.