Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Position in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) by 2.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,338 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Abercrombie & Fitch worth $6,762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 81.5% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 274 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch by 604.4% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 317 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 156.0% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 279 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 39.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 788 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $110,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 8,914.3% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 631 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $112,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the period.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:ANF opened at $154.56 on Monday. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has a twelve month low of $86.91 and a twelve month high of $196.99. The stock has a market cap of $7.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.29 and a beta of 1.52. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $146.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $153.01.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 26th. The apparel retailer reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.19 billion. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. Abercrombie & Fitch’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Samir Desai sold 5,926 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.51, for a total value of $880,070.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,059 shares in the company, valued at $3,275,982.09. The trade was a 21.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Scott D. Lipesky sold 8,605 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.20, for a total transaction of $1,292,471.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 97,850 shares in the company, valued at $14,697,070. The trade was a 8.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 17,401 shares of company stock worth $2,631,741. Corporate insiders own 2.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ANF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $201.00 to $204.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $170.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $190.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abercrombie & Fitch presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.50.

Abercrombie & Fitch Company Profile

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.