Analyst: FY15 Holiday Die Cast At Gap Inc.

Gap Inc.'s

fashion offerings are missing the mark and the die is already cast for the 2015 holiday season, an analyst said Thursday. Gap "already purchased product for the brand through holiday as early as February," said Cantor Fitzgerald's Laura Champine. "It's hard to see this situation improving quickly." Gap, off more than 8 percent in the year to date, closed Thursday at $38.56, down $0.11 cents. The San Francisco-based retailer, which posted earnings Thursday, saw first-quarter net income fall 8 percent to $239 million. Sales results, posted earlier this month, revealed a 15 percent decline in April comps for Gap's namesake brand. Old Navy, which accounts for 40 percent of Gap's revenue, posted an April same-store sales decline of 6 percent. Champine characterized April results as "awful" and cut her price target 6 percent to $44 while maintaining a Hold rating on Gap. Old Navy's relatively better performance is "not something to brag about" unless Gap wants customers whose families "like to wear matching outfits on vacation," San Francisco Chronicle columnist and author Thomas Lee wrote. http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/Gap-should-shake-up-its-board-with-a-little-youth-6264504.php Lee suggested that Gap might benefit from a shake-up of its board. "The motley group includes private equity types, the chief financial officer for American Airlines, a Chinese banker, and the guy who runs snacks and beverages for Procter & Gamble," Lee wrote. "It's not exactly the people who would regularly attend New York Fashion Week," Lee said. A Gap spokeswoman told Lee the company's board is "highly qualified."