Officials at Target were already expecting less-than-stellar news about first-quarter sales, but apparently it was worse than anticipated.
Target announced earlier this week that sales fell more than had been expected in the first quarter, prompting the retailer to warn they will slip for all of 2025 as its customers, worried over the impact of tariffs and the economy, pull back on spending.
The Associated Press reported that Target officials also acknowledged that customer boycotts during the last quarter also hurt business. The company scaled back many diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in January after pressure from conservative activists and the White House.
Shares fell 3.5% in midday trading Wednesday, according to the AP report.
Quarterly sales fell 2.8% from last year to $23.85 billion, and that was short of the $24.23 billion Wall Street expected, according to FactSet. Target earned $1.04 billion, or $2.27 per share, for the period ended May 3. That compares with $942 million, or $2.03 per share, in the year-ago period.
Target cut its annual sales projections Wednesday. The company now expects a low-single digit decline for 2025 after projecting a 1% increase for sales in March.
It also forecast annual per-share earnings of $7 to $9, excluding gains from legal settlements this year.
“We’re not satisfied with these results, so we’re moving with urgency to navigate through this period of volatility,” Target CEO Brian Cornell told reporters on a call Tuesday, the AP reported. “We’ve got to drive traffic back into our stores or visits to our site.”
