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

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Friday . The company traded as low as $14.07 and last traded at $14.10, with a volume of 520523 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on AEO shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $17.00 price objective (down from $19.00) on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Raymond James assumed coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $2.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $16.14 and its 200-day moving average is $18.62.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is currently 42.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Eagle Outfitters news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.02, for a total value of $48,043.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 7.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 95.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,916 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 258.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,608 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 2,239.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 2,463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp acquired a new position in American Eagle Outfitters during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. 97.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.