Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Shares Up 6% – Here’s Why

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) traded up 6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $159.13 and last traded at $158.68. 522,904 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 1,691,335 shares. The stock had previously closed at $149.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ANF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $194.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $170.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Abercrombie & Fitch currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.14.

Abercrombie & Fitch Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $144.31 and a 200-day moving average of $154.02. The firm has a market cap of $7.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.33 and a beta of 1.52.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by $0.18. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.83 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Abercrombie & Fitch

In related news, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.20, for a total value of $1,292,471.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 97,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,697,070. The trade was a 8.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Samir Desai sold 5,926 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.51, for a total transaction of $880,070.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,275,982.09. This represents a 21.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 37,072 shares of company stock worth $5,161,597 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ANF. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 2.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 48,338 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $6,762,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 47.9% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,757 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,225,000 after purchasing an additional 2,835 shares in the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Invst LLC grew its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 22.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invst LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 1.9% during the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 8,119 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 154 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.