American Eagle Outfitters Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:AEO)

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 21,213 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 214% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,762 put options.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 2,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were 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 SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 7.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Eagle Outfitters

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 95.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,916 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 258.8% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,045 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 171.1% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,548 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,608 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of American Eagle Outfitters by 2,239.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,573 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 2,463 shares during the period. Finally, Park Place Capital Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Eagle Outfitters during the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. 97.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays cut shares of American Eagle Outfitters from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $17.00 to $10.00 in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut shares of American Eagle Outfitters from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of American Eagle Outfitters from $16.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $15.00 target price (down previously from $19.00) on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of American Eagle Outfitters in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.50.

American Eagle Outfitters Trading Down 4.6 %

AEO opened at $10.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 9.34, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.57. American Eagle Outfitters has a 1-year low of $10.92 and a 1-year high of $26.25. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.01 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $17.78.

American Eagle Outfitters Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.58%. American Eagle Outfitters’s payout ratio is 42.74%.

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.