Short Interest in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) Increases By 17.4%

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,370,000 shares, a growth of 17.4% from the January 15th total of 13,090,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on American Eagle Outfitters from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $17.00 price target (down from $19.00) on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on American Eagle Outfitters from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of AEO stock opened at $14.35 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $16.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.76. American Eagle Outfitters has a 12-month low of $14.07 and a 12-month high of $26.44. The firm has a market cap of $2.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.53.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The apparel retailer reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.02. American Eagle Outfitters had a return on equity of 20.75% and a net margin of 4.28%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that American Eagle Outfitters will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. American Eagle Outfitters’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of American Eagle Outfitters stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.02, for a total value of $48,043.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 7.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Eagle Outfitters

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 95.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,916 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 258.8% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,475 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 2,239.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares during the last quarter. Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 137.5% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,358 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 1,944 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.33% of the company’s stock.

American Eagle Outfitters Company Profile

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.