First Trust Advisors LP Reduces Position in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. $AEO

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) by 36.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 121,415 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 69,369 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.07% of American Eagle Outfitters worth $2,028,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 24.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 162,243 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,885,000 after buying an additional 32,191 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 105,726 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,229,000 after acquiring an additional 4,599 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 1,238.2% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 52,551 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $611,000 after acquiring an additional 48,624 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,398 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 349.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 538,681 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $5,182,000 after acquiring an additional 418,943 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,892 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.77, for a total transaction of $48,498.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Noel Joseph Spiegel sold 2,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.78, for a total transaction of $48,527.76. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 11,563 shares of company stock worth $196,599 in the last three months. Company insiders own 8.95% of the company’s stock.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Performance

NYSE AEO opened at $17.98 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.10, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 1.32. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $12.05 and a fifty-two week high of $28.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.55.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The apparel retailer reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.29) earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 24th. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is currently 30.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $22.00 target price on American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Monday, June 1st. TD Cowen dropped 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. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of American Eagle Outfitters from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $24.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.91.

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.