Bryant said that 200,000 people had committed to the Target fast during Lent. He credited the movement’s efforts for bringing down Target’s stock, something he had previously mentioned as a goal, and for diminishing the company’s foot traffic.
The pastor claimed that before the fast, Target was trading at $138 per share, but that as of Friday (April 18), because of how “stridently you have put your hand to the plow,” company stock had fallen to $94 per share. Bryant further claimed that Target foot traffic had fallen by 7.9%.
According to information on Target’s website, on March 4, the day before Ash Wednesday, Target was trading at $117 per share. On Feb. 2, the Sunday Bryant made his announcement about the fast, Target was trading at about $138 per share. The closing price for Target stocks on Thursday, April 17, was about $93 per share.
Data from analytics firm Placer.ai reports that Target’s foot traffic fell 9% year-over-year in February and 6.5% year-over-year in March.
“They tried to put out a statement that their loss is because of the economy, because of tariffs with China, but the reality is that while they were losing, Costco was gaining,” said Bryant, alluding to Costco’s refusal to roll back DEI. “I am so, so grateful that there is power in unity, and we know the strength of Black economics.”
Retail Brew reports that the foot traffic for Costco has consistently increased over the past 16 weeks but emphasized, “Correlation is not causation.” It also noted that the foot traffic of Walmart and McDonald’s, which both complied with Trump’s opposition to DEI, saw foot traffic increases during the second week of April.
Bryant told his congregation that “a meeting took place,” possibly referencing National Action Network President Rev. Al Sharpton’s recent meeting with Target CEO Brian Cornell. In an April 17 statement on Facebook, Sharpton said, “This morning, I had a very constructive and candid meeting with Brian Cornell that included NAN National Board Chair Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson and NAN Senior Advisor Carra Wallace.”
“I am going to inform our allies, including Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant, of our discussion, what my feelings are, and we will go from there,” said Sharpton.
According to Bryant, Target has only agreed to fulfill its commitment to its $2 billion pledge but not the other three demands. Therefore, the pastor is leading his church in continuing the Target boycott.
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