Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $179.50.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $170.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com cut Abercrombie & Fitch from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Down 0.9 %

ANF opened at $153.88 on Friday. Abercrombie & Fitch has a 52 week low of $86.91 and a 52 week high of $196.99. The stock has a market cap of $7.75 billion, a PE ratio of 15.22 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50 day moving average of $145.67 and a 200-day moving average of $152.35.

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

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 81.5% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake 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 worth $44,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 39.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 788 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 8,914.3% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 631 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares during the period.

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.