Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Acquires New Stake in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 85,276 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,804,000.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

American Eagle Outfitters Stock Performance

American Eagle Outfitters stock opened at $22.63 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.98. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $9.95 and a fifty-two week high of $26.44. The stock has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.59.

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The apparel retailer reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current year.

American Eagle Outfitters Announces Dividend

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

American Eagle Outfitters announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 1st that authorizes the company to buyback 30,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at American Eagle Outfitters

In related news, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 1,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.59, for a total value of $46,917.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer M. Foyle sold 16,971 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.53, for a total value of $433,269.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 226,497 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,782,468.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cary D. Mcmillan sold 1,908 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.59, for a total transaction of $46,917.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 72,319 shares of company stock valued at $1,732,938 in the last ninety days. 7.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.