A right-wing investment fund has given Target Corp. the boot, adding to the mounting fallout over the retailer's Pride merchandising plans.
The American Conservative Values ETF (ACVF) announced Thursday that it has divested its holdings in the retail giant and added the company to its "Refuse to Buy" list, citing the company's "woke" agenda.
A customer pushes a shopping cart outside a Target store in Hyattsville, Maryland. Target is facing backlash due to controversy over its LGBTQ merchandising plans. (Photographer: Sarah Silbiger/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
"Target Corp.'s ever increasing pandering to the Woke LGBT agenda has backfired and its management team's inept response to a crisis of their own making has significantly damaged their brand across the political spectrum," ACVF stated in a press release. "We believe their stocks' long-term performance will suffer because of it. Their actions have also removed any doubt about the company's hostility to conservative values."
Target is facing backlash from both the left and the right after wading deeper into the culture wars.
Santa Fe, NM: A Target employee pulls red shopping carts into the Santa Fe NM store. Santa Fe’s Target is constructed in the Southwest Pueblo architectural style. (iStock / iStock)
The company has been criticized by conservatives for its LGBTQ merchandise displays as it prepares for Pride month in June, and angered liberals by relocating and removing some LGBTQ items in an effort to tamp down customer "outrage," as first reported by FOX News Digital.
The company held emergency meetings to try to avoid a "Bud Light situation," referring to backlash from conservatives over the iconic beer brand's partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, but some investors fear it may be too late.
Bud Light has faced intense backlash from longtime customers over recent campaign with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney. (Instagram/Fox News / Fox News)
ACVF CEO and co-founder William Flaig told FOX Business that Target was not a significant holding in the ETF, saying it was 0.28% of assets, slightly more than its 0.18% weight in the S&P 500. The fund has boycotted 34 companies total, including Disney, Facebook parent Meta, BlackRock and Google.
"The danger of companies playing politics is an obvious risk to their shareholders, one easily mitigated," Flaig said. "In addition to boycotting the worst offenders we have recently submitted two shareholder proposals to raise awareness and highlight this risk to boards and shareholders."