Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Shares Down 4.7% – Here’s Why

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)’s share price was down 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $123.23 and last traded at $122.54. Approximately 1,108,158 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 2,422,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $128.57.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ANF. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $173.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $201.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Raymond James cut their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Abercrombie & Fitch presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.25.

Abercrombie & Fitch Trading Down 0.6 %

The company has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 1.52. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $145.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $146.93.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.18. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abercrombie & Fitch

In other news, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.20, for a total value of $1,292,471.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 97,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,697,070. This trade represents a 8.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Suzanne M. Coulter sold 2,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $459,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,405 shares in the company, valued at $1,024,800. The trade was a 30.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,401 shares of company stock valued at $2,631,741. 2.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ANF. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 92.2% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 81.5% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 156.0% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 604.4% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 317 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 56.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 367 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the last quarter.

About Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch Co, through its subsidiaries, operates as an omnichannel retailer in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and internationally. The company offers an assortment of apparel, personal care products, and accessories for men, women, and kids under the Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie kids, Hollister, and Gilly Hicks brands.