Shares of American Eagle rose Wednesday after the retailer raised its sales forecasts, as the apparel company continued to see traffic increase following the viral trend Sydney Sweeney jeans campaign.
The company’s shares are up 136% over the past six months, with a gain of about 50% in the past month and up 19% in the past five days. That streak was boosted by the release of American Eagle’s “Great Jeans” ad in July, which featured Sweeney. It also had a high-profile campaign with NFL star Travis Kelce’s clothing brand Tru Kolors.
American Eagle now expects comparable sales to grow between 8% and 9% during the holiday quarter, well above analyst estimates of a 2.2% increase, according to data compiled by LSEG.
“I am extremely pleased with the significant trend change within our company, which reflects decisive steps taken from merchandising to marketing to operations – all of which are having a positive impact,” said Jay Schottenstein, CEO of American Eagle Outfitters, which leads the brand’s parent company.
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American Eagle’s ad campaign with Sydney Sweeney helped boost the brand. (Sawayasu Tsuji/Getty Images)
American Eagle’s revenue rose 6% in the third quarter, while total comparable sales rose 4%.
The company increased his prospects for the fourth quarter will reflect comparable sales growth in the range of 8% to 9%, up from the low single digits.
Operating income guidance was also raised to a range of $155 million to $160 million, up from $125 million to $130 million below the previous forecast.
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| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEO | AMERICAN EAGLE OUTFITTERS INC. | 24.25 | +0.26 |
+1.06% |
“The strong momentum has continued into the fourth quarter, including an excellent start to the holiday season,” Schottenstein said.
“We delivered a record-breaking Thanksgiving weekend, led by an acceleration in demand across brands and channels and underlined by excellent growth at Aerie and Offline,” he added. “We are focused on finishing the season strong and continuing our success in 2026 and beyond.”
The Sweeney ad featured the “Euphoria” star, saying, “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits such as hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue.”
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The Sweeney ad caused a viral controversy, although American Eagle stood behind the ad and has seen increased sales in its aftermath. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Critics of the ad said it promoted eugenics and claimed it promoted racist and regressive themes.
Schottenstein stood behind the advertisement and told the story The Wall Street Journal“You can’t run from fear. We stand behind what we did.”
He also told the Journal that “we would never have done it” if he or his team found the ad offensive.
The CEO noted the ad’s impact in comments he made about the company’s quarterly profit call early September.
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“The iconic fall denim campaign with Sydney Sweeney confirms that we are the American jeans brand,” said Schottenstein. “We saw record-breaking new customer acquisitions and brand awareness across all age groups and genders.”
