Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Shares Down 4.7% - Here's Why

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF - Get Free Report) shares traded down 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $123.23 and last traded at $122.54. 1,108,158 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 2,422,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $128.57.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on ANF. UBS Group upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $173.00 to $220.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Raymond James cut their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $182.25.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Down 3.8 %

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $146.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.48. The stock has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 1.52.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The business's revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Abercrombie & Fitch news, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.20, for a total transaction of $1,292,471.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 97,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,697,070. The trade was a 8.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Suzanne M. Coulter sold 2,870 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $459,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,405 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,024,800. This represents a 30.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,401 shares of company stock valued at $2,631,741. 2.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 92.2% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 81.5% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 156.0% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 604.4% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 317 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 56.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 367 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Company Profile

Abercrombie & Fitch Co, through its subsidiaries, operates as an omnichannel retailer in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. The company offers an assortment of apparel, personal care products, and accessories for men, women, and kids under the Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie kids, Hollister, and Gilly Hicks brands.

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