American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $22.18.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. UBS Group upped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised American Eagle Outfitters from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $31.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

NYSE AEO opened at $24.28 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.44. The company has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of 28.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.59. American Eagle Outfitters has a 1-year low of $9.95 and a 1-year high of $26.44.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The apparel retailer reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.11. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 3.23%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th were given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is currently 58.14%.

American Eagle Outfitters announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that authorizes the company to buyback 30,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 26,440 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.66, for a total transaction of $652,010.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 226,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,585,416.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 26,440 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.66, for a total transaction of $652,010.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 226,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,585,416.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 20,000 shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total value of $420,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 232,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,881,639. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 72,319 shares of company stock valued at $1,732,938. Company insiders own 7.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Eagle Outfitters

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEO. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 37.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,092,955 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $128,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,663,569 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 84.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 233,065 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $3,871,000 after purchasing an additional 106,397 shares in the last quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Eagle Outfitters during the 4th quarter worth $231,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 32.1% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 596,391 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $9,906,000 after purchasing an additional 145,038 shares during the period. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund acquired a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,729,000. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Eagle Outfitters Company Profile

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc operates as a multi-brand specialty retailer in the United States and internationally. The company provides jeans, apparel and accessories, and personal care products for women and men under the American Eagle brand; and intimates, apparel, activewear, and swim collections under the Aerie and OFFLINE by Aerie brands.