American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) shares gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $26.82, but opened at $24.28. American Eagle Outfitters shares last traded at $24.3310, with a volume of 2,275,664 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on AEO. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $11.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded American Eagle Outfitters from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.18.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $22.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.38 and a beta of 1.39.

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

American Eagle Outfitters Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th will be issued a $0.125 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 43.10%.

Insider Transactions at American Eagle Outfitters

In other American Eagle Outfitters news, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 243,047 shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,659,549.30. The trade was a 55.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 8.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 93.2% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 85,918 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $2,266,000 after purchasing an additional 41,458 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 36,241 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $956,000 after buying an additional 1,350 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,017 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,015,000 after buying an additional 8,154 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 53.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,692 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 1,287 shares during the period. Finally, Cambria Investment Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cambria Investment Management L.P. now owns 10,777 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $184,000 after acquiring an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. 97.33% of the stock is 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.