Weiss Asset Management LP Boosts Position in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Weiss Asset Management LP increased its holdings in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 29.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 377,969 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 84,873 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP’s holdings in Bath & Body Works were worth $12,065,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BBWI. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 65.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 730 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Bath & Body Works by 3.5% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,028,000 after buying an additional 1,775 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 7.2% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 42,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,664,000 after acquiring an additional 2,868 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Community Trust NA purchased a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works in the second quarter worth $30,000. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on BBWI shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Bath & Body Works from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Bank of America cut their target price on Bath & Body Works from $54.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target (down previously from $52.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.88.

Bath & Body Works Stock Down 3.5 %

NYSE:BBWI opened at $36.78 on Friday. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.20 and a 52 week high of $52.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $31.62 and a 200 day moving average of $35.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.97, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.83.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.58 billion. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 44.03% and a net margin of 12.43%. The business’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.51%.

Insider Transactions at Bath & Body Works

In related news, CEO Gina Boswell acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $29.64 per share, with a total value of $177,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 242,987 shares in the company, valued at $7,202,134.68. This represents a 2.53 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc operates a specialty retailer of home fragrance, body care, and soaps and sanitizer products. It sells its products under the Bath & Body Works, White Barn, and other brand names through retail stores and e-commerce sites located in the United States and Canada, as well as through international stores operated by partners under franchise, license, and wholesale arrangements.