Target Reports Holiday Sales and Maintains EPS Guidance
- Comparable sales grew 1.4 percent in the November/December period, on top of 5.7 percent comp growth last year. While sales were below expectations, the Company is maintaining its previous guidance for fourth quarter earnings per share.
- The fourth quarter is on track to be the Company's 11th straight quarter of comparable sales growth.
- Comparable digital sales grew 19 percent in the November/December period.
- Sales through
Target's same-day fulfillment services (Order Pick Up, Drive Up and Shipt) grew more than 50 percent from the November/December period last year, driving approximately three-quarters of the Company's digital sales growth.
- Sales through
- Continued strength in multiple categories was offset by softer-than-expected performance in key holiday categories including Electronics, Toys and portions of Home, which together account for approximately one-third of the Company's holiday season sales.
November/December comp sales performance by category: |
|
Apparel |
Up approx. 5% |
Essentials & Beauty |
Up approx. 6% Up approx. 7% |
Food & Beverage |
Up approx. 3% |
Home |
Down approx. 1% |
Hardlines |
Down more than 3% Approx. flat Down more than 6% |
- During the holiday season, the Company continued to grow market share across many of its core merchandise categories, including Apparel, Beauty, Essentials and Food & Beverage, based on
Target's analysis of data from theNPD Group and IRI.- Despite approximately flat comparable sales,
Target continued to gain share in Toys during the holiday season, based on data from theNPD Group .
- Despite approximately flat comparable sales,
- The Company now expects fourth quarter 2019 comparable sales growth in line with its November/December performance of 1.4 percent. The Company is maintaining its previous guidance ranges for fourth quarter GAAP EPS from continuing operations and Adjusted EPS.
- For more background on holiday performance, please visit: https://corporate.target.com/article/2020/01/holiday-2019
For the Holiday period specifically, sales results came in below our expectations as we experienced softer-than-expected performance in areas of our business that are critical during the season, including Electronics, Toys and portions of our Home assortment. Because these categories account for a much higher portion of sales during the holidays, they have a larger impact on our overall sales growth as compared to the rest of the year. At the same time, we've seen continued strength and market share gains in Apparel, Beauty, Essentials and Food & Beverage. And in Toys, despite approximately flat comparable sales, we continued to gain share over the holidays, according to data from the NPD group.
Given the relative performance of higher-margin versus lower-margin categories, our fourth quarter financial results will benefit from a stronger-than-expected gross margin mix in our holiday sales. In addition, our fourth quarter performance will benefit from productivity improvements in our stores and supply chain, as well as meaningfully lower clearance inventory compared with a year ago. Altogether, we are maintaining our previous guidance for
I want to thank the entire
Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2019 Guidance
The Company is maintaining its fourth quarter and full-year EPS guidance as disclosed in the Company's third quarter earnings press release. Specifically, in that release the Company anticipated fourth quarter GAAP EPS from continuing operations of
Leadership Announcements
Effective immediately,
"Over the course of her 30 years with the Company, Janna has made many significant contributions, including transforming the role our stores play in delivering for our guests in this new era of retail. We wish her the best as she prepares for retirement," said Cornell. "As we look ahead, I'm confident Mark brings the right set of diverse experiences to realize even more potential for
Additionally, the retailer announced that it is formalizing the interim structure it announced for its Merchandising organization in October with the appointment of
"Christina and Jill are seasoned leaders and incredibly talented merchants, and during their respective tenures, both have driven outstanding outcomes that compel guests to choose
Miscellaneous
Statements in this release regarding fourth quarter comparable sales guidance, full-year 2019 earnings per share guidance and expectations for 2020 financial performance are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially. The most important risks and uncertainties are described in Item 1A of the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
About
View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/target-reports-holiday-sales-and-maintains-eps-guidance-300987113.html
SOURCE
John Hulbert, Investors, (612) 761-6627; Katie Boylan, Media, (612) 761-7788; Target Media Hotline, (612) 696-3400