Bath & Body Works’ (BBWI) “Outperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Telsey Advisory Group

Telsey Advisory Group reiterated their outperform rating on shares of Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $43.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays upgraded Bath & Body Works from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $34.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Bath & Body Works from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $44.44.

Bath & Body Works Stock Down 12.5 %

Bath & Body Works stock opened at $35.95 on Thursday. Bath & Body Works has a 52 week low of $26.20 and a 52 week high of $52.99. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $37.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $34.08. The firm has a market cap of $7.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.83.

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

Bath & Body Works announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio is 19.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BBWI. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Bath & Body Works during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $343,000. American Trust bought a new stake in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth about $205,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Bath & Body Works during the fourth quarter worth $2,920,000. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new stake in Bath & Body Works in the fourth quarter worth about $576,000. Finally, Northwest Bank & Trust Co increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwest Bank & Trust Co now owns 14,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $533,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

About Bath & Body Works

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.