Mall check: Abercrombie & Fitch attracts bull rating from J.P. Morgan

Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) traded slightly higher on Monday after J.P. Morgan upgraded the mall retailer to an Overweight rating after having it slotted at Neutral.

Analyst Matthew Boss said that following marketing and merchandising improvements over the last few years, the Abercrombie brand has successfully expanded its customer reach to an 18-40 year customer demographic, with strong new customer acquisition globally supporting broad-based topline results. Boss also pointed out that a higher mix of ANF sales are at full prices, which is aiding the margin line. Another positive factor noted for ANF is that the Hollister brand inflection is only in the middle innings of its growth surge, with the men’s and tops businesses seen as representing two opportunities for further upside.

“We also see brand momentum building internationally, noting ~$400M revenue recapture opportunity remaining relative to pre-pandemic. On the bottom-line, we see annual modest EBIT margin expansion long-term on a structurally higher EBIT margin (vs. pre-pandemic) supported by occupancy expense savings.”

J.P. Morgan established a December 2025 price target of $194, which works out to 8X the firm’s FY26 EBITDA estimate. The trading multiple was said to be in line with JPMorgan’s non-distressed retail peer average. The price target implies 20% upside for ANF.