Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,440,000 shares, a decrease of 9.3% from the October 15th total of 10,410,000 shares. Currently, 4.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,830,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

Shares of BBWI traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.36. 2,666,260 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,820,104. Bath & Body Works has a 52 week low of $26.20 and a 52 week high of $52.99. The company has a market cap of $6.65 billion, a PE ratio of 7.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $36.29.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works will post 3.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.64%. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is presently 19.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Gina Boswell acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.64 per share, for a total transaction of $177,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 242,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,202,134.68. The trade was a 2.53 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 5,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 6.6% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 5,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 2.5% in the first quarter. Northwest Bank & Trust Co now owns 13,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $655,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 31,797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,560,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BBWI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $52.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (down previously from $52.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $35.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $57.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $42.44.

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.