American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.

The following Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (this "MD&A") is intended to help the reader understand the Company, our operations and our present business environment. This MD&A is provided as a supplement to — and should be read in conjunction with — our MD&A for Fiscal 2025, which can be found in Part II, Item 7 of our Fiscal 2025 Form 10-K.

In addition, the following discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations are based upon our Consolidated Financial Statements and should be read in conjunction with these statements and notes thereto.

Introduction

This MD&A is organized as follows:

Recent accounting pronouncements the Company has adopted or is currently evaluating prior to adoption, including the dates of adoption or expected dates of adoption, as applicable, and anticipated effects on the Company’s audited Consolidated Financial Statements, are included in Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, to the Consolidated Financial Statements included herein.

Executive Overview

We are a leading global specialty retailer offering high-quality, on-trend clothing, accessories and personal care products at affordable prices under our American Eagle® and Aerie® brands.

We have two reportable segments, American Eagle and Aerie. Our Chief Operating Decision Maker (defined as our CEO) analyzes segment results and allocates resources based on adjusted operating income (loss), which is a non-GAAP financial measure. See Note 12, Segment Reporting, to the Consolidated Financial Statements included herein for additional information.

Key Performance Indicators

Our management evaluates the following items, which are considered key performance indicators, in assessing our performance:

Comparable Sales — Comparable sales and comparable sales changes provide a measure of sales growth for stores and channels open at least one year over the comparable prior year period. In fiscal years following those with 53 weeks, the prior year period is shifted by one week to compare similar calendar weeks. A store is included in comparable sales in the 13th month of operation. However, stores that have a gross square footage change of 25% or greater due to a remodel are removed from the comparable sales base but are included in total sales. These stores are returned to the comparable sales base in the 13th month following the remodel. Sales from American Eagle, Aerie, Todd Snyder, and Unsubscribed stores, as well as sales from AEO Direct and other digital channels, are included in total comparable sales. Sales from licensed stores are not included in comparable sales. Individual American Eagle and Aerie brand comparable sales disclosures include sales from stores and AEO Direct.

28

Omni-Channel Sales Performance – Our management utilizes the following quality of sales metrics in evaluating our omni-channel sales performance: comparable sales, average unit retail price, total transactions, units per transaction, and consolidated comparable traffic. We include these metrics in our discussion within this MD&A when we believe that they enhance the understanding of the matter being discussed. Investors may find them useful as such. Each of these metrics is defined as follows (except comparable sales, which is defined separately above):

Gross Profit — Gross profit measures whether we are optimizing the profitability of our sales. Gross profit is the difference between total net revenue and cost of sales. Cost of sales consists of merchandise costs, including design, sourcing, importing, and inbound freight costs, as well as markdowns, shrinkage and certain promotional costs, buying, occupancy and warehousing costs and services and, until the completion of its operational wind-down, Quiet Platforms costs to service its customers. Design costs consist of compensation, rent, depreciation, travel, supplies, and samples.

Buying, occupancy and warehousing costs and services consist of compensation, employee benefit expenses and travel for our buyers and certain senior merchandising executives; rent and utilities related to our stores, corporate headquarters, distribution centers and other office space; freight from our distribution centers to the stores; compensation and supplies for our distribution centers, including purchasing, receiving and inspection costs; and shipping and handling costs related to our e-commerce operations.

The inability to obtain acceptable levels of sales, initial markups or any significant increase in our use of markdowns could have an adverse effect on our gross consolidated profit and results of operations.

Operating Income — Our management views operating income as a key indicator of our performance. The key drivers of operating income are net revenue, gross profit, our ability to control selling. general, and administrative ("SG&A") expenses, and our level of capital expenditures.

Cash Flow and Liquidity — Our management evaluates cash flow from operations and investing and financing activities in determining the sufficiency of our cash position and capital allocation strategies. Cash flow has historically been sufficient to cover our uses of cash. Our management believes that cash flow and liquidity will be sufficient to fund anticipated capital expenditures and working capital requirements for the next twelve months and beyond.

Current Trends and Outlook

Macroeconomic Conditions, Inflation and Tariffs

During the 13 weeks ended May 2, 2026, our results were negatively impacted by macro-economic challenges and global inflationary pressures impacting consumer spending behavior.

In addition, trade policies and continued uncertainty related thereto, including with respect to tariffs and other restrictions, relating to countries from which we source our merchandise and raw materials, have created a dynamic and unpredictable trade landscape. This has and may continue to adversely impact our business and operations. On February 20, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the U.S. administration’s imposition of tariffs pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”) was unlawful, striking down the 10% global baseline tariff, as well as the higher tariffs imposed on certain U.S. trading partners. The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling did not affect all of the recently imposed tariffs, including those imposed following trade remedy investigations by the Department of Commerce or the U.S. Trade Representative. Nor does the ruling prohibit the imposition of future tariffs through alternative trade authorities available to the U.S. administration. Shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling, effective February 24, 2026, the U.S. administration imposed a new 10% global tariff for a period of 150 days pursuant to a balance-of-payments provision in Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which was invalidated by the Court of International Trade ("CIT") on May 7, 2026, though relief was limited to the named plaintiffs, and litigation is ongoing following the government's appeal. The U.S. administration further announced that it would begin additional trade remedy investigations into certain trading partners pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and with respect to certain product sectors pursuant to Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. The U.S. Supreme Court decision invalidating the IEEPA tariffs did not address a remedy or refunds, which instead have been addressed in cases in front

29

of the CIT. The CIT ordered U.S. Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") to issue refunds for all IEEPA tariffs, plus interest. Pursuant to this order from CIT, CBP developed and implemented a process to facilitate refunds through its Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries (“CAPE”) system, the first phase of which went live on April 20, 2026. As of the date of this Quarterly Report, the Company has submitted all refund claims currently eligible for refund in the first phase of CAPE. While the Company has taken steps to preserve its rights, no assurance can be given that all requests for IEEPA tariff refunds will be realized.

Accordingly, uncertainty with respect to tariffs remains ongoing. The imposition of tariffs by the U.S. government, associated geopolitical tensions, including reciprocal tariffs by trading partners, and uncertainties regarding U.S. import tariffs have and may further affect our margins and operations or could lead to further weakened business conditions for our industry. We continue to evaluate the impact of tariffs and other trade policies on our business. Refer to Note 11, Commitments and Contingencies and Note 14. Subsequent Events to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further information on U.S. tariffs.

For further information about the risks associated with global economic conditions and the effect of economic pressures on our business, see "Risk Factors" in Part I, Item 1A of our Fiscal 2025 Form 10-K.

Omni-Channel Capabilities

The Company operates stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with merchandise available in more than 30 countries through a global network of license partners. Additionally, the Company operates a robust e-commerce business across its brands.

Over the past several years, we have invested in building our technologies and digital capabilities. We focused our investments in three key areas: making significant advances in mobile technology, investing in digital marketing and improving the digital customer experience.

Results of Operations

Overview

We entered 2026 with strong momentum and delivered a solid start to the fiscal year, with double-digit revenue growth. The first quarter of Fiscal 2026 reflected the strength of our portfolio and highlighted the strength of the Aerie brand, which delivered exceptional growth and profitability across channels. We continue to prioritize operational excellence and financial discipline to create long-term value for AEO and its shareholders.

Compared to the first 13 weeks of Fiscal 2025:

The following table shows the percentage relationship to total net revenue of the listed line items included in our Consolidated Statements of Operations:

30

The following table shows our consolidated store data for the 13 weeks ended May 2, 2026 and May 3, 2025:

As of May 2, 2026, we operated 804 American Eagle retail stores, consisting of 184 Aerie side-by-side locations, 10 locations with AE brand, Aerie brand and OFFLINE™ connected as one store, and six OFFLINE™ side-by-side locations, 335 Aerie stand-alone stores (including 49 OFFLINE™ stand-alone stores and 52 OFFLINE™ side-by-side locations), and AEO Direct. Additionally, there were 23 Todd Snyder stand-alone locations and eight Unsubscribed locations.

Comparison of the 13 weeks ended May 2, 2026 to the 13 weeks ended May 3, 2025

Total Net Revenue

Total net revenue increased 10% for the 13 weeks ended May 2, 2026 to $1.195 billion, compared to $1.090 billion last year. Digital revenue increased 15%, and store revenue increased 8%. Total comparable sales increased by 8%, compared to a 3% decrease last year.

31