JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) Stock Price

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) had its price target reduced by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $189.00 to $168.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the apparel retailer’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 100.80% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $173.00 to $220.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Finally, Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $147.75.

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Performance

Shares of ANF opened at $83.67 on Wednesday. Abercrombie & Fitch has a 52-week low of $79.77 and a 52-week high of $196.99. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $123.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.28 and a beta of 1.45.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $3.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.48 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57 billion. Abercrombie & Fitch had a net margin of 11.16% and a return on equity of 46.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Abercrombie & Fitch will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Abercrombie & Fitch announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $1.30 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 29.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Abercrombie & Fitch

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Abercrombie & Fitch during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 92.2% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 223 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 604.4% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 317 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 56.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 367 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter.

Abercrombie & Fitch Company Profile

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.