JP Morgan cut Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) to neutral from overweight, saying it sees Q3 revenue growth and same store sales (SSS) coming in below Street consensus.
The bank lowered its price target to $103 from $145 (~22% upside based on Oct. 3 close).
Analyst Matthew Boss sees Q3 revenue growth of 3.9% year over year, which compares to the Street’s estimate of 6.2% and management’s projection of 5%-7%.
He is also lowering A&F’s SSS to -9.2%, a 510 bps greater decline from the Street, though he is raising Hollister’s SSS to +13%, compared to the Street’s +11.6%.
Boss noted that fieldwork indicates there is a “hangover” effect due to first half of the year’s large promotion and clearance activity, which is negatively impacting customer conversion rates as well as regular-priced selling.
A&F shares are down ~7.5% in Monday afternoon trading.
