Discounts and sales events have remained a significant sales driver, as consumers emerge from a more than two-year stretch of high inflation. It’s unclear how much those deals will cut into Target’s and other retailers’ profit margins, and whether sales will keep improving if promotions fade away.

Target reported strong holiday sales on Thursday, giving its stock a boost. The retail chain said sales increased 2% on a comparable basis in the last two months of 2024 from a year earlier, and overall sales rose 2.

Target raised its holiday-quarter comparable sales forecast on Thursday, buoyed by robust shopper demand for clothing, toys and beauty products during November and December, but profit margin concerns sent its shares down nearly 3%.

Target raised guidance for a key metric in an update on its holiday sales after achieving records for both Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotional events.

Target (TGT) is raising its fourth quarter sales forecast as the retailer reports record-high sales figures from its Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions. The stock is under pressure on Thursday morning,

Analysts surveyed by LSEG had expected fourth-quarter comparable sales to rise 0.2%. However, the retailer maintained its forecast for fourth-quarter and full-year adjusted earnings per share to be in the range of $1.85 to $2.45 and $8.30 to $8.90, respectively.

Target Corp. raised its sales guidance following a better-than-expected holiday season, bolstering the company’s turnaround efforts.