Target continued to see strong sales in the fall, though growth slowed slightly from the record heights of summer.
Target’s comparable sales jumped 20.7% during the period of August, September and October, the company said Wednesday. That helped lift its overall revenue by 21.3% and its profit by 42% in its third fiscal quarter.
“It’s been encouraging to see the resilience and the guests coming back to us each and every week, quarter by quarter during the pandemic and we certainly hope that continues as we go forward into the holidays,” Target CEO Brian Cornell told reporters.
The Minneapolis-based retailer saw a record 24.3% jump in comparable sales during the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic led U.S. consumers to change their shopping behavior, narrowing the number of places they go and buying more at stores when they do visit.
Target’s store traffic in the latest period rose by 4.5% and its average ticket value was up nearly 16%.
Despite the reduction in group gatherings and celebrations due to the virus, customers still followed seasonal shopping trends for Halloween and back-to-school, the company said.
Customers waited until late in the season to go back-to-school shopping as school districts across the country decided how they would teach students, Cornell said. But back-to-school business ended up strengthening in September and helped drive sales for the month, he said.
Target began to roll out its holiday sales early in October and spread out its deals over recent weeks offering them in store and online to prevent huge crowds from converging on stores due to safety concerns. Many consumers have started to shop earlier, but most shoppers still have a large portion of their holiday shopping they need to finish, he said.
“It really is playing out the way we expected,” Cornell said, about the response to earlier holiday sales. “I think the guest is reacting well to the fact that we are spreading out deals. We are making sure they got Black Friday value all month long. And I think the steps we have taken to really make sure it’s easy and convenient and safe for our guests to shop is being well received.”
Target as well as Walmart, Best Buy and others plan to be closed Thanksgiving. Target will open its stores at regular time for most of its stores on Black Friday.
Similar to earlier this year, electronics continued to be a popular category for shoppers in the third quarter with sales growing more than 50%. With so many people working and learning from home, consumers also bought more home items and decor which pushed sales growth in the mid-20% range.
Apparel grew by nearly 10% with less formal clothing like intimates and sleepwear continuing to be popular but also apparel for kids and men.
Following patterns seen already during the pandemic, Target’s digital comparable sales grew 155% and contactless same-day services including drive up, order pick up and those delivered by Shipt grew in the triple digits in total but still noticeably less than the growth rate in the first two quarters of the year.
Target said it earned $1.01 billion, up from $714 million a year ago.
Revenue was $22.3 billion, up from $18.4 billion.
Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer, reported strong results earlier this week, with comparable sales in the United States rising 6.4%, though also not as strong as earlier in the pandemic.
Twitter: @nicolenorfleet