Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $83.39, but opened at $73.82. Abercrombie & Fitch shares last traded at $71.20, with a volume of 606,459 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ANF shares. Raymond James set a $110.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup cut their price target on Abercrombie & Fitch from $160.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group cut their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $210.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Abercrombie & Fitch currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.88.

Abercrombie & Fitch Trading Up 4.4 %

The company’s fifty day moving average is $95.74 and its 200 day moving average is $127.45. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.26 and a beta of 1.41.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.57 billion. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.97 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Abercrombie & Fitch announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, March 5th that permits the company to buyback $1.30 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 29.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 91.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 4,068 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $569,000 after buying an additional 1,943 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch during the third quarter worth approximately $1,744,000. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 41.7% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,478 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 729 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 3,617 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $505,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp purchased a new position in Abercrombie & Fitch in the 3rd quarter worth $548,000.

About Abercrombie & Fitch

Abercrombie & Fitch Co engages in the retail of apparel, personal care products, and accessories. The firm operates through following geographical segments: Americas, EMEA and APAC. The Americas segment includes operations in North America and South America. The EMEA segment includes operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.