Target earnings beat, stock spikes

(TGT) on Wednesday reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $753 million.

Target Corp. posted better-than-expected earnings for the second quarter and again lifted its profit outlook for the full year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $1.11 per share for the quarter.

For the current quarter ending in November, Target expects its per-share earnings to range from 79 cents to 89 cents. The company had revenue of $17427.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $17397.99 million.The company’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter past year.

Quarterly sales increased 2.8 percent to $17.4 billion from $17.0 billion last year, reflecting a 2.4 percent increase in comparable sales combined with sales from new stores.

The company earned $1.22 per share on an adjusted basis, above its own estimate of $1.04-$1.14. “While the momentum in our financial results is encouraging, we have much more to accomplish”.

Shares of Target are up about 5 percent in pre-market trading.

Target now expects FY15 adjusted earnings of $4.60 to $4.75 per share, versus its earlier forecast of $4.50 to $4.65 per share.