Brokerages Set Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) PT at $42.50

Shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $42.50.

A number of brokerages have commented on BBWI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bath & Body Works

In related news, CEO Gina Boswell bought 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $29.64 per share, for a total transaction of $177,840.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 242,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,202,134.68. This trade represents a 2.53 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBWI. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 5,270.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,054 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 480.3% during the 3rd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 1,436 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of BBWI stock opened at $39.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.58, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.83. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.38. Bath & Body Works has a fifty-two week low of $26.20 and a fifty-two week high of $52.99.

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

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is 19.51%.

Bath & Body Works Company 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.