Jeffries topped our list as the worst CEO of last year. He has been A&F’s chief executive officer since 1992, and over the past three years has been paid more than $107 million as the company’s stockholders have lost about 40% of the value of their investment. It is way past time for a change at the top of A&F.
Engaged Capital said it owns about 400,000 shares of A&F stock, or roughly 0.5%. The investment firm also suggested that A&F stockholders may be better served by a sale of the company to a private equity firm.
A&F could hardly fare worse than it is now. Sales are down more than 7% in the first nine months of the company’s fiscal year, and in its outlook for the current quarter A&F said it expects to face continued challenges from fast-fashion stores like Forever 21 and H&M. A&F’s share price is off by about 30% so far this year and has traded recently much nearer its lows than its highs.
Teen retailer Hot Topic was taken private earlier this year by private equity firm Sycamore Partners, which also took Talbots private in 2012. Another struggling teen retailer, Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) has seen its stock price dive by about 25% in 2013, and a Sycamore subsidiary and Hirzel Capital Management now hold 14% of Aeropostale’s stock. American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) is another struggling teen retailer, and its shares are down about 21% so far this year.
A&F shares are getting a boost of nearly 6% on news of Engaged Capital’s missive. The stock traded around $36.00 in the late morning on Tuesday, in a 52-week range of $32.41 to $55.23.
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