Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Short Interest Update

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 9,990,000 shares, a growth of 11.9% from the September 15th total of 8,930,000 shares. Currently, 4.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 5,370,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Bath & Body Works Trading Down 1.9 %

Bath & Body Works stock traded down $0.61 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $31.86. The stock had a trading volume of 751,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,684,472. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $30.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.74. Bath & Body Works has a 12 month low of $26.20 and a 12 month high of $52.99. The stock has a market cap of $7.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.77.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.69% and a negative return on equity of 41.94%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 23rd. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BBWI. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target (down from $52.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on Bath & Body Works from $57.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $60.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.35.

Insider Activity at Bath & Body Works

In other news, CEO Gina Boswell acquired 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were bought 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 $7,202,134.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Bath & Body Works

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Bath & Body Works by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,398,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,370,458,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102,124 shares during the last quarter. Lone Pine Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 15.8% during 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 during the second quarter worth approximately $113,995,000. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT grew its holdings 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 worth $81,564,000 after buying an additional 189,889 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,448,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,443,000 after acquiring an additional 76,183 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

About Bath & Body Works

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.