American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday.

AEO has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $25.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 29th. TD Cowen cut their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $18.00 price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Bank of America cut their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $20.00 to $16.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut American Eagle Outfitters from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.91.

American Eagle Outfitters Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock opened at $17.14 on Friday. American Eagle Outfitters has a fifty-two week low of $10.29 and a fifty-two week high of $28.46. The business’s fifty day moving average is $17.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a PE ratio of 10.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.31.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The apparel retailer reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.03. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 5.01%.The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.29) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is presently 30.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,892 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.77, for a total value of $48,498.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director David M. Sable sold 5,779 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total value of $99,572.17. Following the sale, the director owned 53,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $921,477.63. This trade represents a 9.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,563 shares of company stock worth $196,599. 8.95% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AEO. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 920.6% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 5,497,720 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $94,066,000 after purchasing an additional 4,959,039 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 162.9% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 6,336,392 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $105,818,000 after purchasing an additional 3,926,230 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,954,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 794.3% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,296,011 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $21,643,000 after buying an additional 1,151,091 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the first quarter worth approximately $16,223,000. Institutional investors own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

About American Eagle Outfitters

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.