Short Interest in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Increases By 17.4%

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) saw a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,370,000 shares, an increase of 17.4% from the January 15th total of 13,090,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Up 0.2 %

AEO stock opened at $14.35 on Monday. American Eagle Outfitters has a twelve month low of $14.07 and a twelve month high of $26.44. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $16.39 and its 200-day moving average is $18.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 12.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.53.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 4.28%. American Eagle Outfitters’s quarterly revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a dividend of $0.125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. American Eagle Outfitters’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on AEO. 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. Morgan Stanley downgraded American Eagle Outfitters from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $19.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Raymond James started coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.00.

Insider Activity at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.02, for a total transaction of $48,043.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 7.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AEO. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 95.7% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,916 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 258.8% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,475 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 2,239.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares during the period. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Eagle Outfitters by 137.5% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,358 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 1,944 shares during the period. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About American Eagle Outfitters

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.