Gap Shares Rally On Solid First-quarter Earnings

Shares of Gap Inc. rallied in Thursday's extended session after the retailer posted better-than-expected quarterly results. The company, whose brands include the namesake chain of stores, Banana Republic and Old Navy, reported its first-quarter earnings rose to $143 million, or 36 cents a share, from $127 million, or 32 cents a share, a year earlier. Foreign currency fluctuations adversely affected its earnings per share by 3 cents, according to Gap. Revenue was flat at $3.44 billion while same-store sales rose 2% in the first quarter, led by an 8% jump in same-store sales at Old Navy. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of 29 cents a share on revenue of $3.39 billion. The company also reaffirmed its 2017 EPS outlook of $1.95 to $2.05. Wall Street is projecting full year EPS of $1.99. Gap shares climbed 6.1% after hours.