American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) Cut to "Hold" at StockNews.com

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on AEO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America dropped their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased 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 report on Thursday, December 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $21.00.

American Eagle Outfitters Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of AEO stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $14.35. 2,931,910 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,981,301. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $16.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.76. The stock has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a PE ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.53. American Eagle Outfitters has a 1 year low of $14.07 and a 1 year high of $26.44.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.02, for a total transaction of $48,043.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 7.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Eagle Outfitters

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Zacks Investment Management purchased a new position in American Eagle Outfitters during the third quarter worth about $931,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,731,000. NFJ Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters during the third quarter worth about $2,680,000. Dupree Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in American Eagle Outfitters in the third quarter valued at about $3,146,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,557,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.33% of the company's stock.

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.