KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires Shares of 42,500 Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 42,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,648,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Bath & Body Works by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $271,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 99.7% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 24.2% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 58.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 905 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 81.9% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

BBWI opened at $30.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $35.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.03. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.21 and a fifty-two week high of $52.99.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.78 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.43% and a negative return on equity of 44.03%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 27th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Bath & Body Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $42.00 to $48.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $46.00 target price (up from $42.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $47.00 price target on Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $45.06.

Bath & Body Works Company Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc is a specialty retailers and home to America’s Favorite Fragrances, offering a breadth of exclusive fragrances for the body and home, including the selling collections for fine fragrance mist, body lotion and body cream, 3-wick candles, home fragrance diffusers and liquid hand soap.