We know that the retail sector is not looking great right now, particularly e-commerce operations. But brick-and-mortar is struggling just as hard as it ever did, and for retail giant Target (TGT), it has plans in mind to fight back even harder. The good news is that shareholders gave Target the benefit of the doubt, and gave shares a fractional boost in Wednesday afternoon’s trading.
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So how does Target look to address the decline in retail, as a population battered by tariffs and trade wars alike tries to figure out how it will husband its cash? The answer: marketing. And plenty of it. In fact, Target has two new ad campaigns ready to try and get back-to-school sales fired up. Parents out there likely consider this preposterous beyond belief: the kids have been out of school for a month, or more likely less. With six weeks or more until their return, why market back-to-school sales now?
But that is what Target is doing, starting with its “Hey Mom, I’m at Target” campaign. Geared toward the collegiate set, Target is tapping college-age content creators who already have something of a following to bring that energy—and those viewers—with them. Another campaign, dubbed “All of the Above,” will follow starting July 6 and focus on the younger set. This campaign will also, reports note, call in influencers who are also teachers, demonstrating Target’s focus on tapping the influencer vein.
Don’t Forget the Sales
In much the same way no one can get blood from a turnip, neither can anyone get money out of a customer who has none. Marketing will only go so far. Thus, Target is also bringing out some summer sales to encourage shoppers to spend, if maybe a bit less than they would have in better times.
Target Circle Week kicks off Sunday, and with it, offers savings up to half off on hundreds of different items. Back-to-school products are in play for discounts—this might hurt its back-to-school sales numbers as it pulls some sales forward—but so too are electronics and “summer essentials” like t-shirts, tank tops, and books for those beach reading excursions.
Is Target Stock a Good Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on TGT stock based on 10 Buys, 19 Holds and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 28.28% loss in its share price over the past year, the average TGT price target of $102.50 per share implies 1.88% downside risk.
