​Target sees profit progress after struggling

NEW YORK - Target (TGT) swung back to a profit for the fourth quarter, and it's reporting its sixth consecutive quarter of rising comparable-store sales. That's a key retail metric for sales at stores open a year or more.

The results Wednesday show that Target has made some progress in reinvigorating its business and winning back shoppers.

Target earned $1.43 billion, or $2.32 per share in the quarter ended Jan. 30. That compares with a loss of $2.64 billion, or $4.10 per share in the year-ago period.

Still, adjusted earnings results were $1.52 per share, which was a bit below the $1.54 per share estimate, according to FactSet.

Revenue slipped 0.6 percent to $21.63 billion on the sale of its pharmacy business to CVS (CVS), also a bit shy of Wall Street expectations.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 1.9 percent. As of 8:30 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday, Target shares weren't trading in premarket hours.