Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF)’s Stock Plunges on Disappointing Earnings

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF)’s stock plunged by over 17% so far today, on the back of the company posting a first-quarter loss of $39.6 million, or $0.59 per share, worse than the analysts’ estimates of $0.50 per share. Revenue declined by 3% on the year to $685.5 million and was $24.76 million below estimates.  The company also reported comparable sales at international stores down by 7% in the quarter, below the estimates of a 0.2% growth. Abercrombie & Fitch’s CEO Chairman Arthur Martinez attributed the decline to “traffic headwinds” in the international markets. Mr. Martinez added that the company has ceased the promotions, and currently sells the merchandise at full price. He ruled out the possibility of a pricing strategy shift by the company.

Despite the fact that Abercrombie & Fitch has registered several quarters of revenue decline, hedge funds seem to like the company. Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) was in 31 hedge funds’ portfolios at the end of March. ANF shareholders have witnessed an increase in support from the world’s most elite money managers lately. There were 29 hedge funds in our database with ANF positions at the end of the previous quarter. At the end of this article we will also compare ANF to other stocks, including Controladora Vuela Co Avcn SA CV (ADR) (NYSE:VLRS), Dycom Industries, Inc. (NYSE:DY), and HB Fuller Co (NYSE:FUL) to get a better sense of its popularity.

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According to Insider Monkey’s hedge fund database, Jim Simons’ Renaissance Technologies holds the number one position in Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF). Renaissance Technologies has a $45 million position in the stock, comprising 0.1% of its 13F portfolio. The second most bullish fund manager is Cliff Asness of AQR Capital Management, with a $30.8 million position; 0.1% of its 13F portfolio is allocated to the stock. Remaining professional money managers that are bullish encompass David Costen Haley’s HBK Investments, John Tompkins’s Tyvor Capital and D. E. Shaw’s D E Shaw.

Since the number of funds bullish on Abercrombie & Fitch went up during the first quarter, let’s take a look at some funds that added the stock to their equity portfolios on the next page.