Barclays PLC Reduces Holdings in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Barclays PLC cut its stake in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 18.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 481,490 shares of the company’s stock after selling 108,070 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.22% of Bath & Body Works worth $15,371,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lone Pine Capital LLC lifted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 15.8% in the second quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC now owns 11,315,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $441,871,000 after buying an additional 1,547,399 shares during the last quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 2nd quarter valued at $113,995,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 17,496.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,516,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,315,000 after acquiring an additional 2,501,828 shares during the period. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 10.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT now owns 2,088,703 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,564,000 after purchasing an additional 189,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 9,023.5% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,701,813 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,683,160 shares during the period. 95.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BBWI opened at $38.22 on Monday. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a one year low of $26.20 and a one year high of $52.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.32, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.83. The company’s fifty day moving average is $32.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.59.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.48 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BBWI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 research note on Thursday. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $54.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on Bath & Body Works from $28.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Bath & Body Works from $54.00 to $45.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.50.

Insider Activity at Bath & Body Works

In other Bath & Body Works news, CEO Gina Boswell acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $29.64 per share, with a total value of $177,840.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 242,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,202,134.68. The trade was a 2.53 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.