American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $16.83 and last traded at $16.87, with a volume of 475475 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.09.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James assumed coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Friday. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price target (down from $27.00) on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America lowered their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, StockNews.com cut American Eagle Outfitters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Eagle Outfitters has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.40.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Down 0.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.51. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.15.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.30 billion. American Eagle Outfitters had a net margin of 4.28% and a return on equity of 20.75%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.49 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. will post 1.69 earnings per share for the current year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. American Eagle Outfitters’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.74%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jay L. Schottenstein sold 999,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.04, for a total value of $20,039,979.96. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,771,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,507,894.04. This trade represents a 36.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.79, for a total transaction of $653,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 200,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,367,304.33. The trade was a 13.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,050,702 shares of company stock valued at $21,148,718 over the last three months. 7.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AEO. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in American Eagle Outfitters during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 171.1% in the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,548 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 1,608 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the 2nd quarter valued at $78,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters during the 2nd quarter worth $108,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in American Eagle Outfitters during the third quarter worth about $141,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

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.