On March 03, Gap Inc. (GPS) declared its Q4 and fiscal 2021 financial results along with the outlook for 2022. Consequently, the stock rebounded in the after hours.
With confusion over the upcoming earnings, investors caused the stock to trade heavily at 22.37 million shares volume. At 229% of the average volume, GPS declined by 2.20% during the regular session, standing at a value of $14.25 at the close. Following the announcement, the stock made a comeback in the after-hours as it added a good 7.58%. Hence, GPS was trading at a value of $15.33 per share in the after-hours on Thursday. The volume remained active at 7.73 million in the after-market session.
The global apparel retail company, Gap Inc. was founded in 1969. With a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, the company has 373.4 million outstanding shares currently. GPS stock has declined by 19.26% year to date while it subtracted a value of 43.85% last year.
GPS’ 2021 Financials
Net Sales
The company reported net sales of $4.5 billion for Q4 2021, which while increasing by 2% YOY declined by 3% against 2019.
Moreover, fiscal 2021 had net sales of $16.7 billion which increased by 21% YOY and by 2% against fiscal 2019.
Diluted EPS
The company reported an adjusted diluted loss of $0.02 per share for Q4 and diluted earnings of $1.44 per share for fiscal 2021. This excludes fees associated with restricting GPS long-term debt and divestiture activity charges.
Operating Margin
The company had an adjusted operating margin of 0.4% in Q4 and 5.5% for fiscal 2021.
GPS Future Outlook
The company expects adjusted diluted EPS of $1.85-$2.05 for fiscal 2022, excluding the net benefit from international initiatives.
Furthermore, with an adjusted operating margin of 6.0-6.5%, GPS expects revenue growth in the low single-digit range.
Recent Developments
On March 02, the company announced establishing its Power of the Collective Council. Focused on pillars of Community, Customer, and Employee, it will create access, drive awareness, and advocate for marginalized, vulnerable communities. This is part of the company’s efforts to drive a systematic change and achieve its 2025 commitments to Create For All, With All.
GPS’ Increased Dividend
On February 24, GPS announced the approval of its plan to increase the annual dividend to $0.60 per share in fiscal 2022. This marks an increase of 25% from the previous $0.48 annualized rate.
Additionally, the Q1 2022 dividend of $0.15 per share was declared for record holders of April 6, payable on April 27, 2022.
