Intech Investment Management LLC Buys 2,828 Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)

Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 31,439 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,828 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Abercrombie & Fitch were worth $4,699,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,525 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $377,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC increased its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 1,877 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Abercrombie & Fitch by 309.5% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 823 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $123,000 after acquiring an additional 622 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in Abercrombie & Fitch during the fourth quarter worth about $703,000. Finally, Gallacher Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Abercrombie & Fitch during the fourth quarter worth about $213,000.

Abercrombie & Fitch Trading Down 3.6 %

ANF opened at $79.69 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $110.56 and its 200-day moving average is $132.73. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. has a 1-year low of $74.31 and a 1-year high of $196.99. The company has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 1.45.

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

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $220.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $149.00 to $139.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Raymond James set a $110.00 target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch in a report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from $189.00 to $168.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Abercrombie & Fitch from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.88.

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.