Target stock continues its free fall, down $15 billion after boycotts over ‘Pride month’ display featuring ‘tuck-friendly’ swimsuits and more

At Friday's close last week, the brand was selling at $126.99-per-share, or a $15 billion loss in market cap since the boycotts started just less than a month ago. On May 17, Target was selling at $160 per share, dropping $9 billion in a single week.

According to the Daily Mail, the retail giant's market cap sat at $74 billion, and now it sits at just over $54 billion total. Analytics have shown that customers leaving Target are taking their business to Walmart.

The backlash stems from Target going over the top with its annual pride display and clothing line this year, after word spread on the internet that the brand was selling swimsuits designed to be "tuck-friendly" for trans-identified males.

As more people started to dig into the display, it was discovered that one of the designers the brand partnered with had a controversial line of clothing. One of the shirts that designer Erik Carnell displays on his website says "Satan respects pronouns," with an image of a goat-headed medallion, and another of a guillotine that reads "Homophobe Headrest."

Target eventually decided it best to move the display to the back of the store and take the items off of its online store. The company said, "Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior."

It has been revealed that the organization has donated millions of dollars to the gender activist organization Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), which promotes the teaching of gender ideology in school.

Other brands such as beer giant Bud Light have been dealing with boycotts of their own, which have shown to be effective. Bud Light has been in the spotlight after it received backlash over a partnership with controversial TikToker Dylan Mulvaney.