Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $183.50.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $201.00 to $204.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $147.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $173.00 to $220.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th.

Abercrombie & Fitch Price Performance

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch stock opened at $131.47 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.73. The firm has a market cap of $6.62 billion, a PE ratio of 13.00 and a beta of 1.52. Abercrombie & Fitch has a 1 year low of $95.51 and a 1 year high of $196.99.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.18. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Abercrombie & Fitch will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abercrombie & Fitch

In related news, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of Abercrombie & Fitch stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were 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 owns 97,850 shares in the company, valued at $14,697,070. The trade was a 8.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Samir Desai sold 5,926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.51, for a total transaction of $880,070.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,275,982.09. This trade represents a 21.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,401 shares of company stock valued at $2,631,741 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 81.5% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 156.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 604.4% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 317 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 8,914.3% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 631 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the period. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 66.1% in the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 741 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Company Profile

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.