American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 14,230,000 shares, a decrease of 13.2% from the February 28th total of 16,400,000 shares. Currently, 8.0% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 5,240,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on AEO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $19.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $16.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Citigroup set a $13.00 target price on American Eagle Outfitters and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $18.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays downgraded shares of American Eagle Outfitters from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $17.00 to $10.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.00.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

Shares of AEO opened at $12.22 on Wednesday. American Eagle Outfitters has a 1-year low of $10.74 and a 1-year high of $25.95. The company has a market capitalization of $2.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.94.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. American Eagle Outfitters’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.76%.

Insider Transactions at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.02, for a total transaction of $48,043.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 7.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in American Eagle Outfitters by 1,510.1% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,509,057 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $41,826,000 after purchasing an additional 2,353,225 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,267,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 2,408.1% in the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,244,008 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $20,738,000 after buying an additional 1,194,408 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters in the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,558,000. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its position in American Eagle Outfitters by 868,408.0% during the fourth quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 868,508 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $14,478,000 after acquiring an additional 868,408 shares during the last quarter. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.