Raymond James Begins Coverage on American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO)

Investment analysts at Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a "market perform" rating on the apparel retailer's stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on AEO. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.40.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:AEO traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $17.15. 3,910,288 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,672,714. American Eagle Outfitters has a 52 week low of $16.88 and a 52 week high of $26.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.51. The firm's 50 day moving average is $19.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.28.

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. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 4.28%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, CEO Jay L. Schottenstein sold 999,999 shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.04, for a total value of $20,039,979.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,771,851 shares in the company, valued at $35,507,894.04. This trade represents a 36.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director David M. Sable sold 18,420 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.04, for a total transaction of $405,976.80. Following the transaction, the director now owns 39,356 shares in the company, valued at $867,406.24. The trade was a 31.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,050,702 shares of company stock worth $21,148,718 over the last quarter. Insiders own 7.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Eagle Outfitters

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AEO. Congress Asset Management Co. acquired a new position in American Eagle Outfitters in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $119,691,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 165.4% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,107,933 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $62,034,000 after acquiring an additional 1,936,938 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 179.1% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,691,474 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $53,722,000 after purchasing an additional 1,726,982 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 36.4% during the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 3,242,838 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $64,727,000 after purchasing an additional 865,355 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters in the second quarter valued at $16,861,000. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Eagle Outfitters Company Profile

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.