Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Trading 3.9% Higher – Still a Buy?

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)’s stock price rose 3.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $161.63 and last traded at $161.57. Approximately 295,768 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 1,701,267 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $155.00 to $147.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $193.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Argus cut shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.71.

Abercrombie & Fitch Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $8.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.39 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.80.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.36. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 47.35%. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Abercrombie & Fitch

In other news, CFO Scott D. Lipesky sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total value of $1,321,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 106,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,627,594. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Scott D. Lipesky sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.80, for a total transaction of $1,321,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 106,455 shares in the company, valued at $15,627,594. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Helen Mccluskey sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.38, for a total transaction of $487,830.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 37,470 shares in the company, valued at $5,222,568.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,541 shares of company stock worth $4,310,256. 3.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ANF. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 146.3% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 863,100 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $153,494,000 after purchasing an additional 512,700 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 2,036.5% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 419,560 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $74,615,000 after purchasing an additional 399,922 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 613.3% in the 1st quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 356,610 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $44,694,000 after purchasing an additional 306,616 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 283.0% during the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 303,896 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $54,045,000 after purchasing an additional 224,555 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 293.7% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 286,434 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $51,043,000 after acquiring an additional 213,684 shares in the last quarter.

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.