Systematic Financial Management LP Increases Stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)

Systematic Financial Management LP raised its position in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF - Free Report) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 287,561 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 9,340 shares during the quarter. Abercrombie & Fitch accounts for approximately 1.1% of Systematic Financial Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Systematic Financial Management LP owned approximately 0.57% of Abercrombie & Fitch worth $42,982,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ANF. Shellback Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. Shellback Capital LP now owns 115,000 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $17,189,000 after buying an additional 37,500 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 41.1% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 16,555 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,474,000 after acquiring an additional 4,823 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 552,374 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $82,563,000 after purchasing an additional 33,309 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 28,625 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $4,279,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 43,674 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $6,526,000 after purchasing an additional 7,618 shares during the last quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Performance

NYSE:ANF traded down $1.42 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $76.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,353,325 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,041,313. The company has a market capitalization of $3.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.58 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.11. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has a 12 month low of $65.40 and a 12 month high of $196.99.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $3.57 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.48 by $0.09. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.97 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Abercrombie & Fitch declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, March 5th that permits the company to repurchase $1.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 29.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ANF. Raymond James set a $110.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $155.00 to $142.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $135.00 to $98.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $114.00 to $78.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.50.

About Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch Co engages in the retail of apparel, personal care products, and accessories. The firm operates through following geographical segments: Americas, EMEA and APAC. The Americas segment includes operations in North America and South America. The EMEA segment includes operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.