UPDATE: Piper Jaffray Upgrades American Eagle Outfitters to Overweight, Raises PT Following Teen Survey

In a report published Wednesday, Piper Jaffray analyst Stephanie S. Wissink upgraded the rating on American Eagle Outfitters

from Neutral to Overweight, and slightly raised the price target from $23.00 to $24.00. In the report, Wissink noted, “We are upgrading shares of AEO to Overweight following our Taking Stock With Teens survey results, which point to resiliency in the AE brand across gender, age, and income profiles, which is evidence of a solid demand trajectory into 2013. While near-term trends across retail have been inconsistent, which merits a more conservative assumption for Q1, we think AE is well positioned to benefit into 2H and 2014. With shares trading in the high-teens, we favor owning for outperformance potential. Further, we are intrigued by the company's evolving digital strategy and potential for a multi-channel benefit to overall operating margin. We are adding one multiple point turn to maintain our modest premium to the group, warranted by execution, brand equity, and margin potential. Our PT goes from $23 to $24/share.” American Eagle Outfitters closed on Tuesday at $19.09.