American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the eleven ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $22.10.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AEO. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. StockNews.com raised American Eagle Outfitters from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Raymond James initiated coverage on American Eagle Outfitters in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Down 4.3 %

Shares of NYSE AEO traded down $0.69 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $15.54. 7,493,200 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,779,200. American Eagle Outfitters has a 1-year low of $15.36 and a 1-year high of $26.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.54. The firm has a market cap of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.53.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.125 dividend. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. American Eagle Outfitters's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.74%.

Insider Activity at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,283 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.49, for a total transaction of $49,061.67. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 7.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Signet Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters during the fourth quarter worth about $215,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Eagle Outfitters in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $147,000. Diversified Trust Co boosted its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 39,429 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $657,000 after purchasing an additional 4,034 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the 4th quarter worth about $1,557,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 8.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,918,295 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $65,341,000 after purchasing an additional 226,821 shares in the last quarter. 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.