Arizona State Retirement System Reduces Stock Position in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO)

Arizona State Retirement System lessened its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 52,445 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 964 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in American Eagle Outfitters were worth $1,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 37.6% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,092,955 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $128,927,000 after buying an additional 1,663,569 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 84.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 233,065 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $3,871,000 after buying an additional 106,397 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 32.1% in the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 596,391 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $9,906,000 after buying an additional 145,038 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the third quarter worth about $1,729,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 28.5% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,259,598 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $37,532,000 after buying an additional 500,555 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on AEO shares. UBS Group upped their target price on American Eagle Outfitters from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Citigroup upped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised American Eagle Outfitters from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $31.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Eagle Outfitters currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.27.

Insider Activity at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 24,271 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.11, for a total value of $488,089.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 232,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,674,750.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.91, for a total value of $47,047.33. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 24,271 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.11, for a total value of $488,089.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 232,459 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,674,750.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 98,953 shares of company stock valued at $2,268,075. 7.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Eagle Outfitters Price Performance

Shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock opened at $22.65 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $20.71. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.95 and a 12 month high of $26.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.59.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The apparel retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.11. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 3.23%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. will post 1.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be issued a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. American Eagle Outfitters’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.14%.

American Eagle Outfitters declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 1st that allows the company to repurchase 30,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About American Eagle Outfitters

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc operates as a multi-brand specialty retailer in the United States and internationally. The company provides jeans, apparel and accessories, and personal care products for women and men under the American Eagle brand; and intimates, apparel, activewear, and swim collections under the Aerie and OFFLINE by Aerie brands.