Target pops after raising guidance thanks to strong holiday sales

AP

• Target shares rose by as much as 4.82% to $70.42 during pre-market trading Tuesday after the retailer beat market expectations for holiday sales.
• The company reported same-store sales rose 3.4% in the November to December period, easily beating the 0% to +2% range that Wall Street was expecting.
• Target raised its fourth-quarter adjusted earnings-per-share guidance to between $1.30 and $1.40. Previously, it expected a range of $1.05 to $1.25.
• For the full-year of 2017, the retailer sees an adjusted earnings-per-share of $4.64 to $4.74 from a prior guidance of $4.40 to $4.60.
• The good news comes on the heels of strong traffic growth and solid digital sales.
• Target recently acquired Alabama-based startup Shipt for $550 million as a way to fend off Amazon's encroachment into the grocery-delivery business.

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