Target Resets Leadership, Focuses on Accountability & Growth

Target Corporation TGT is reshaping its leadership structure as new CEO Michael Fiddelke moves to put his strategic stamp on the business, prioritizing faster execution, clearer accountability and a stronger merchandising backbone. The changes build on recent board refreshment and underscore a push to better align leadership with the company’s growth and guest-focused ambitions.

Cara Sylvester has been elevated to chief merchandising officer, unifying merchandising responsibilities under a single leader. Previously serving as the chief guest experience officer, Sylvester brings broad experience across digital, loyalty and marketing, along with a record of driving revenues and market share gains. Management views the role as the key to reinforcing Target’s authority in style and design through tighter control of product development, assortments and brand partnerships.

Lisa Roath steps into the role of chief operating officer after previously running merchandising for food, essentials and beauty. She will now oversee the full retail operation, from supply chain to stores, with an emphasis on improving speed, efficiency and execution. Management believes closer coordination between merchandising strategy and operational delivery should lead to a more reliable and elevated shopping experience.

The reorganization also includes senior departures. Chief commercial officer Rick Gomez will exit the company, while longtime executive Jill Sando will retire after nearly three decades at Target. Both are expected to support transition efforts in the near term. Separately, the company has begun an external search for a new chief guest experience and marketing officer, highlighting an ongoing focus on customer engagement.

Alongside the leadership changes, Target reaffirmed its financial outlook. The company continues to expect a low-single-digit decline in fourth-quarter sales, with adjusted earnings projected at $7.00-$8.00 per share and GAAP earnings anticipated at $7.70-$8.70. Taken together, the leadership reset and steady guidance suggest that Target is laying the groundwork for a more disciplined and cohesive strategy.

What Latest Metrics Say About Target

TGT, which competes with Dollar General Corporation DG and Costco Wholesale Corporation COST, has seen its shares decline 8% in the past year against the industry’s growth of 8.6%. While shares of Dollar General have soared 102.6%, those of Costco have dropped 8.3% in the aforementioned period.

From a valuation standpoint, Target’s forward 12-month price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57 reflects a lower valuation than the industry’s average of 33.38. Target is trading at a discount to Costco (with a forward 12-month P/E ratio of 46.22) and Dollar General (20.60).

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TGT’s fiscal 2025 earnings implies a year-over-year decline of 17.6%, while the same for fiscal 2026 indicates growth of 6.2%. Earnings estimates for fiscal 2025 and 2026 have been unchanged and upbound by 1 cent per share, respectively, in the past seven days.

Target currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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