New York, February 11, 2026, 4:12 PM EST — After-hours
- Gap ended the day off 0.6% at $27.51. The stock moved between $27.28 and $28.36.
- After retail sales stalled, raising new doubts over consumer appetite, traders sifted through a surprisingly robust U.S. jobs report.
- All eyes shift to Friday’s U.S. CPI release, with Gap’s next earnings date hanging in the balance.
Shares of Gap slipped by the close on Wednesday, erasing earlier advances as investors rethought rate outlooks and their impact on discretionary spending.
Shares of the Old Navy owner slipped as a hotter-than-forecast U.S. jobs report sent Treasury yields up, cooling hopes for imminent Federal Reserve rate cuts.
The jobs surprise hit just a day after December’s U.S. retail sales came in flat—unexpectedly—highlighting how quickly households can tighten the purse strings when faced with higher costs. “Overall, signs of earlier consumer strength may be starting to falter,” said Thomas Ryan, North America economist at Capital Economics. Market watchers now look to Friday, when January’s U.S. consumer price data is set for release. Reuters
Traders in rates markets continued to favor a June cut, yet they bumped up the odds that the Fed holds steady, Reuters reported, citing market positions after the jobs numbers. “An extended pause still seems likely,” Nationwide’s Oren Klachkin said in a note. Reuters
Gap tracked the wider apparel and retail space, finishing the day among a mixed pack. TJX dropped 1.7%. Abercrombie & Fitch eased off by roughly 0.6%.
Gap’s no stranger to this tug-of-war. Rising yields put pressure on consumer names, bumping up borrowing costs and squeezing valuations. When shoppers pull back, the first signs usually land in heavier promotions and tighter inventory controls.
Eyes are on Gap’s upcoming earnings, but no official date has landed yet. Third-party calendars point to a window from late February into early March, using the retailer’s usual schedule as a guide.
In its last earnings release back in November, Gap topped forecasts for both comparable sales and profit, Reuters noted then, citing strong demand fueled by marketing efforts at Old Navy and Banana Republic.
Bulls face a key risk here: if this week’s scattered data points slide into a sharper slowdown, sticky rates could start to sting. Add in softer spending, and retailers might be pushed into steeper discounting, all while input costs remain jumpy.
All eyes now shift to Friday’s U.S. CPI print. Investors are watching closely, gauging if the Fed has room to lower rates before year-end—without sparking another wave of inflation.
