American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded American Eagle Outfitters to “buy” from “hold,” though the broader analyst consensus remains “hold,” with an average price target of $19.91.
• AEO shares opened at $17.14, while the company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations: earnings were $0.14 per share versus $0.11 expected, and revenue reached $1.20 billion.
• Insiders sold approximately $196,600 of stock over the past 90 days, while institutional investors maintain strong ownership at 97.33%.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on AEO. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of American Eagle Outfitters from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $20.00 to $16.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 29th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $24.00 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $19.91.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

Shares of AEO stock opened at $17.14 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $17.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The firm has a market cap of $2.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 1.31. American Eagle Outfitters has a 12 month low of $10.29 and a 12 month high of $28.46.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The apparel retailer reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.18 billion. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 5.01%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.29) EPS. Research analysts expect that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Noel Joseph Spiegel sold 2,892 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.78, for a total transaction of $48,527.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,892 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.77, for a total transaction of $48,498.84. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,563 shares of company stock worth $196,599. 8.95% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,000,419 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $158,231,000 after acquiring an additional 680,332 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 151,993.0% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 65,400 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,725,000 after acquiring an additional 65,357 shares during the period. Broad Peak Investment Advisers Pte Ltd bought a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters in the 1st quarter valued at $2,973,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters in the 1st quarter valued at $5,490,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,398,401 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $485,166,000 after purchasing an additional 249,158 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.33% of the company's stock.

About American Eagle Outfitters

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.

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