Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) Shares Sold by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC decreased its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) by 7.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,093 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 350 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch were worth $612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Abercrombie & Fitch during the 4th quarter worth approximately $88,478,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,229,875 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $183,829,000 after acquiring an additional 212,155 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,371,000. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in the 4th quarter valued at $28,327,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 701,798 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $104,898,000 after purchasing an additional 131,970 shares during the last quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Price Performance

ANF opened at $73.22 on Friday. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has a 12 month low of $65.40 and a 12 month high of $196.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 1.41. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $124.66.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $3.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.09. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.97 earnings per share. Abercrombie & Fitch’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Abercrombie & Fitch declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.30 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase up to 29.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on ANF. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $135.00 to $98.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com lowered Abercrombie & Fitch from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 9th. Raymond James set a $110.00 price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $136.25.

About Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch Co engages in the retail of apparel, personal care products, and accessories. The firm operates through following geographical segments: Americas, EMEA and APAC. The Americas segment includes operations in North America and South America. The EMEA segment includes operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.