Eisler Capital Management Ltd. Purchases New Holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)

Eisler Capital Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 20,431 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,128,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,755,692 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $860,303,000 after buying an additional 53,999 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 150.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,484,643 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $221,910,000 after purchasing an additional 892,492 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,229,875 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $183,829,000 after purchasing an additional 212,155 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,037,773 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $155,116,000 after purchasing an additional 115,758 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Abercrombie & Fitch by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 745,723 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $111,463,000 after purchasing an additional 147,779 shares during the period.

Abercrombie & Fitch Price Performance

Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch stock opened at $73.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a PE ratio of 7.24 and a beta of 1.47. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $75.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.49. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has a 52-week low of $65.40 and a 52-week high of $196.99.

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) last issued its 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. Abercrombie & Fitch had a return on equity of 46.50% and a net margin of 11.16%. The business had revenue of $1.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.97 EPS. Abercrombie & Fitch’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ANF shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $114.00 to $78.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays started coverage on Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Monday, April 21st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $71.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James set a $110.00 price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Abercrombie & Fitch from $168.00 to $155.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Abercrombie & Fitch from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $119.63.

Abercrombie & Fitch 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.