NEW YORK (
TheStreet) --
Abercrombie & Fitch (
ANF) is trying hard to fit in, but just can't seem to get it right.
Citi cut the teen retailer's rating to sell from hold, saying it will continue to experience deteriorating same-store sales.
Shares of the company tumbled 6% in morning trading to $29.06.
In August, Abercrombie's
comparable sales plunged 29%, drastically missing the 23.9% tumble expected by analysts.
In comparison, rivals
Aeropostale (
ARO) beat Wall Street's forecast, rising 9% during the month, while
American Eagle Outfitters (
AEO) fell 7%, although it still managed to surpass the 9.4% expected.
Stock Wrap: The Real Story, September 3
Abercrombie's problems are bigger than pricing and new merchandise, analyst Kimberly Greenberger wrote in a research note. The company's "proactive promotional stance during back-to-school shopping season is not supporting improved sales productivity," she wrote.
Greenberger believes Abercrombie's sales misses will force the company to continue to lower its earnings-per-share forecasts.
-- Reported by Jeanine Poggi in New York. Follow TheStreet.com on
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