Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) Rating Increased to Overweight at Piper Sandler

Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $35.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $38.00.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. set a $47.00 price target on Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Argus reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $48.00 to $36.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Bath & Body Works from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $44.06.

Bath & Body Works Trading Up 6.1 %

NYSE:BBWI traded up $1.63 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $28.27. 3,946,102 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,676,015. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.69. Bath & Body Works has a one year low of $24.96 and a one year high of $52.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.00.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.98%.

Bath & Body Works announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, February 27th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBWI. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,199,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,093,306,000 after acquiring an additional 208,036 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,235,086 shares of the company's stock valued at $396,815,000 after purchasing an additional 422,973 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,494,089 shares of the company's stock valued at $329,317,000 after purchasing an additional 445,887 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 35.6% during the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,178,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,768,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360,264 shares during the period. Finally, Anomaly Capital Management LP increased its position in Bath & Body Works by 38.3% in the fourth quarter. Anomaly Capital Management LP now owns 4,860,876 shares of the company's stock worth $188,456,000 after buying an additional 1,346,752 shares during the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.