American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have given a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.4545.

AEO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $18.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $23.00 target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of American Eagle Outfitters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Performance

Shares of AEO stock opened at $26.31 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.68 and a beta of 1.44. The business has a 50 day moving average of $20.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.90. American Eagle Outfitters has a 52 week low of $9.27 and a 52 week high of $28.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The apparel retailer reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.10. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 13.82% and a net margin of 3.90%.The business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.48 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.7 EPS for the current year.

American Eagle Outfitters Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is 43.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,945 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.95, for a total value of $49,917.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 243,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.30, for a total transaction of $5,906,042.10. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 191,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,659,549.30. The trade was a 55.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 8.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL increased its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 50.0% during the third quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL now owns 1,500 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 151.0% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,848 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 2,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the third quarter valued at $39,000. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Eagle Outfitters Company Profile

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc (NYSE: AEO) is a leading American specialty retailer offering apparel, accessories and personal care products for men and women. The company’s flagship brand, American Eagle, focuses on casualwear including denim, tops, outerwear and accessories targeted primarily at teens and young adults. In addition to its core apparel lines, the company operates the Aerie brand of intimates, loungewear and swimwear, which has gained recognition for its body-positive marketing and inclusive sizing.

American Eagle Outfitters conducts business through a combination of over 900 brick-and-mortar stores in North America and Greater China, complemented by a growing e-commerce platform that serves customers around the globe.