Key Takeaways
Gap ( GAP ) shares jumped roughly 7% Monday when JPMorgan upgraded the stock and lifted the price target, pointing to positive comments from the apparel retailer's CEO and CFO after a meeting with the bank's analysts.
JPMorgan raised its rating on Gap to "overweight" from "neutral," with a price target of $30, up from the previous $28.
The analysts wrote in a note to clients that CEO Richard Dickson "characterized the company at an inflection point moving to 'continuous improvement' from 'fixing fundamentals.'" They added that Dickson's "consistency" plan is "built on a foundation of increased efficiency (i.e. inventory mgmt, marketing, operational savings) and flywheel reinvestment (ala best in class brands) to drive multi-year growth."
In addition, CFO Katrina O'Connell pointed to "annual operating margin expansion targeting historical levels of profitability."
JPMorgan increased its estimate for earnings per share (EPS) to $2.30 for fiscal 2025 and $2.53 for fiscal 2026, both higher than Wall Street forecasts.
Shares of Gap are up about 24% this year.