** Abercrombie & Fitch ANF.N shares down about 16%, American Eagle Outfitters AEO.N shares down 9% premarket

** ANF, AEO report holiday sales, signaling a softer holiday quarter as budget-conscious shoppers pulled back on discretionary spending, pressuring sales

** Abercrombie & Fitch tempers annual net sales, profit growth forecast

** Now expects net sales to grow at least 6% vs. its previous forecast of rise between 6% and 7%

** American Eagle Outfitters maintains Q4 comparable sales in the range of 8% to 9%

** Shares of other apparel retailers down, Under Armour UAA.N down about 3%, Gap GAP.N shares down about 2%, VF Corp VFC.N down about 1% premarket

** ANF down ~16%, AEO up ~58% in 2025

(Reporting by Sanskriti Shekhar in Bengaluru)

((Sanskriti.Shekhar@thomsonreuters.com))