Target Corp. CEO Brian Cornell reassured customers on Wednesday that the retailer will only hike prices as a "very last resort" to make up for lost profit due to tariffs. The company released its first-quarter earnings report earlier today, recording a 2.8% annual drop in net revenue.

"The difficulty level has been incredibly high given the rates we're facing and the uncertainty about how these rates in different categories might evolve," Cornell said, warning Target could see "massive" costs. Meanwhile, Chief Commercial Officer Rick Gomez said the firm has explored strategies including "negotiating with our vendor partners, re-evaluating assortment decisions."

Target's shares plunged 6.5% in premarket trade.