Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $46.73.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on BBWI shares. TD Cowen upped their target price on Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $30.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of BBWI stock opened at $47.22 on Wednesday. Bath & Body Works has a fifty-two week low of $27.30 and a fifty-two week high of $50.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.89. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $46.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.27.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $2.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.84 billion. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 37.01% and a net margin of 11.82%. Bath & Body Works’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were paid a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Thomas E. Mazurek sold 4,285 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total transaction of $209,493.65. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,248,548.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Bath & Body Works by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,296,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,134,938,000 after acquiring an additional 606,525 shares in the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC grew its position in Bath & Body Works by 20.0% in the 4th quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 10,448,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $450,973,000 after acquiring an additional 1,742,471 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter valued at about $101,669,000. Darsana Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $76,050,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Bath & Body Works by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,963,919 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,763,000 after acquiring an additional 38,272 shares in the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.