Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. cut its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 57.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,264 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,271 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Bath & Body Works were worth $475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of BBWI. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 58.8% in 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 period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 5,270.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,054 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in Bath & Body Works during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of BBWI stock opened at $32.66 on Friday. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.20 and a 12-month high of $52.99. The business’s 50 day moving average is $37.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.18. The company has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.89.

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

Bath & Body Works announced that its board has initiated 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is 21.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on BBWI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup raised Bath & Body Works from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $40.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $43.00 price target on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently 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.