Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) Short Interest Up 10.4% in December

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANFGet Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,790,000 shares, an increase of 10.4% from the November 30th total of 4,340,000 shares. Currently, 9.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,710,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ANF traded down $5.18 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $149.47. 1,704,934 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,714,916. The firm has a market cap of $7.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.78 and a beta of 1.52. Abercrombie & Fitch has a 52-week low of $86.91 and a 52-week high of $196.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $145.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.32.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANFGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Abercrombie & Fitch will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Abercrombie & Fitch news, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 97,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,697,070. This trade represents a 8.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Suzanne M. Coulter sold 2,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $459,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,024,800. This represents a 30.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,401 shares of company stock worth $2,631,741. 2.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ANF. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 6.5% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 1,070 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Chartwell Investment Partners LLC now owns 9,445 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,322,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc raised its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 1,564 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,277 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $583,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on ANF shares. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research note on Friday, December 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 price objective for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $147.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $170.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Abercrombie & Fitch currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.50.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on ANF

About Abercrombie & Fitch

(Get Free Report)

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.

Recommended Stories

Receive News & Ratings for Abercrombie & Fitch Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Abercrombie & Fitch and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.