Target Impresses The Street In Q2 Report, Shares Gain 5%

Target Corporation TGT impressed investors in its second-quarter earnings report Wednesday, sending the stock higher by more than 5 percent — a strong move considering Target already issued guidance in early July.

Target reported that it earned $1.23 per share in the quarter on revenue of $16.429 billion; analysts were expecting the retail chain to earn $1.19 per share on revenue of $16.3 billion. Comparable sales for the entire company rose 1.3 percent in the quarter while the digital channel saw its comparable sales grow by 32 percent.

"We continue to focus on our long-term strategy, as we work to transform every part of our business and build an even better Target that will thrive in this new era in retail," said Brian Cornell, chairman and CEO of Target. "While our recent results are encouraging, we will continue to plan prudently as we invest in building our brands, our digital channel, the value we provide our guests and elevating service levels in our stores."

Target also returned to investors $627 million, of which $331 million were in the form of dividends, while the company bought back 5.6 million shares of its own stock at an average price of $52.45, for a total investment of $296 million.

Target ended the quarter with $4.1 billion of remaining capacity under its $5 billion share repurchase program.

Looking forward, Target expects to earn 75–95 cents per share in the third quarter versus analysts expectations of $0.77 per share. For the full fiscal year, the company expects to earn $4.34 to $4.54 per share versus expectations for $4.39 per share.

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