American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

AEO has been the subject of several other research reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Barclays lowered their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $24.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Zacks Research cut American Eagle Outfitters from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC began coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $21.75.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

NYSE AEO opened at $16.86 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.05, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $21.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.92. American Eagle Outfitters has a 12 month low of $9.27 and a 12 month high of $28.46.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.13. American Eagle Outfitters had a net margin of 3.49% and a return on equity of 16.76%. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.74 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.54 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.7 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 1,896 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.21, for a total value of $49,694.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Noel Joseph Spiegel sold 1,896 shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.66, for a total transaction of $48,651.36. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 8.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AEO. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 24.8% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 162,243 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,885,000 after purchasing an additional 32,191 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 105,726 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,229,000 after buying an additional 4,599 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 1,238.2% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 52,551 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 48,624 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 9.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,398 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 265.8% in the second quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 422,754 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,067,000 after acquiring an additional 307,171 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

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.