Target bucks retail apocalypse woes, spikes on earnings beat

Target Corp's stock rose 7.4% to $58.55 a share after the company reported a smaller-than-expected drop in quarterly comparable sales on Wednesday.

Sales at stores open at least one year fell 1.3%, better than the 3.6% drop expected by analysts polled by research firm Consensus Metrix.

Net income rose to $681 million, or $1.23 per share, in the first quarter ended April 29, from $632 million, or $1.05 per share, a year earlier.

The company's performance is a rare bright spot for the US retail industry, which has come under pressure lately amid mounting competition from online rivals.

It hasn't been pretty for brick-and-mortar shops of late. In addition to a rash of store closures, Sears is also battling dwindling inventory, while its CEO publicly battles one of the department store's biggest tool vendors. Macy's is shutting stores at a rapid clip. Even billionaire investor Warren Buffett has piled on.

The strength in Target's stock on Wednesday will be welcome news for investors who have seen it plunge more than 30% from a six-month high reached in late November. Prior to the earnings report, the shares had slipped 6.6% over the previous week alone.

(Reuters reporting by Sruthi Ramakrishnan in Bengaluru; Editing by Martina D'Couto)