American Eagle shares rose Thursday afternoon, as the teen apparel retailer outlined plans to close hundreds of stores in the coming years, while it looks to grow it lingerie and active-wear brand Aerie to a $2 billion business.
The stock was last up more than 3%.
Chief Financial Officer Mike Mathias said during a virtual meeting with investors that the company, which has about 880 stores, is looking to shut between 200 and 250 mostly mall-based locations in the next two to three years. Meantime, it plans to grow the number of Aerie stores by 50, to about 400 at the end of 2021, and is targeting having 500 to 600 Aerie locations in 2023.
