StockNews.com Downgrades Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Sunday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on ANF. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $210.00 to $150.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $160.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group cut their price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $190.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.88.

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Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Performance

NYSE:ANF traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $78.65. 2,624,565 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,808,124. Abercrombie & Fitch has a one year low of $75.65 and a one year high of $196.99. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $118.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $135.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.96 billion, a PE ratio of 7.78 and a beta of 1.45.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Abercrombie & Fitch will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Abercrombie & Fitch announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.30 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase up to 29.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ANF. Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch during the fourth quarter worth $212,000. Empirical Finance LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 87.2% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,818 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,318,000 after acquiring an additional 4,108 shares in the last quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC grew its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 24,669 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,687,000 after acquiring an additional 2,479 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 228.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 27,621 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,864,000 after purchasing an additional 19,222 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 158,554 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $23,699,000 after purchasing an additional 4,837 shares during the last quarter.

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.