American Eagle just caught fire.
A viral push from WallStreetBets and a new Sydney Sweeney campaign sent the stock flying. Shares jumped 25% overnight, dragging AEO into the meme trade sweepstakes. The fall rollout includes oversized 3D billboards, AI-powered try-ons, and a denim line stamped with Sweeney’s name. Retail numbers said one thing. The market did something else.
Same-store sales fell 3% last quarter. Margins got squeezed by tariffs. None of it stopped the surge.
The stock closed at $10.82, up 6.2%. After-hours shot it to $13.40. That’s a $416 million boost to the company’s value in one move. Short interest is near 12%. Volume broke past 5 million shares. The current P/E is 6.43. Dividend yield sits at 4.62%.
Consensus for next year’s earnings is $1.23. That puts the forward multiple at about 8.5x. But Reddit traders are throwing out different math. Some are using $1.60 EPS targets, which gets you to $24 at a 15x multiple. Not bank models. Just back-of-the-napkin bull cases going viral.
The campaign is all Gen Z. Sweeney’s line in the release read, “They’ve literally been there with me through every version of myself.” Jackets are set at $79.95. The drop hits August 10. Las Vegas’ Sphere will display the ad across its Exosphere. Snapchat filters and AR tools are baked into the rollout. Proceeds from the Sydney Jean are going to Crisis Text Line.
Retail sentiment flipped fast. AEO was trending top five on Stocktwits. Reddit threads called it “the next OPEN.” That’s Opendoor, which exploded 480% last month. Then came Krispy Kreme. Then GoPro. Now American Eagle. The setup repeats. Low valuation. Heavy short interest. A catalyst people can tweet. Fundamentals step aside. Price moves first.
Opendoor. Krispy Kreme. Kohl's. GoPro.
Meme stock mania is back. pic.twitter.com/Om1eyxjxIo
— Brew Markets (@brewmarkets) July 23, 2025
Sydney Sweeney doing the fall campaign at $AEO.
Consensus EPS next year is $1.23 (Feb-27), which implies 8.5x P/E at the $10.50 price. Stock’s beaten down due to poor (-3%) Q1 SSS & tariff-induced margin pressure.
I think they can do $1.60 in EPS, which would be $24 @ 15x P/E. pic.twitter.com/SiNGjPetF8
— Wasteland Capital (@ecommerceshares) July 23, 2025
Yea… American Eagle is about to go vertical.$AEOpic.twitter.com/MtKqVadMND
— Geiger Capital (@Geiger_Capital) July 23, 2025
$AEO +12% AH. Absolutely incredible. https://t.co/TmaT8Y4c9i
— Geiger Capital (@Geiger_Capital) July 23, 2025
One trader out of Columbus posted he made $45,000 in under an hour. Another wrote, “This is the Crocs playbook but with better jeans.”
Analysts are now eyeing $13.50. If it holds, $15 is in view. If it breaks, the pullback may drag it toward $10. Earnings hit September 4. Until then, this is momentum. Nothing more. Nothing less.
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