683,280 Shares in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Acquired by Raymond James Financial Inc.

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 683,280 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,491,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.32% of Bath & Body Works as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth about $73,572,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 79.1% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,882,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $150,507,000 after buying an additional 1,715,096 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in Bath & Body Works by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,178,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $200,768,000 after acquiring an additional 1,360,264 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 331.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,144,608 shares of the company's stock worth $44,376,000 after acquiring an additional 879,387 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 328.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,069,941 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,153,000 after purchasing an additional 820,379 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $49.00 to $42.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Bath & Body Works from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $42.00 to $48.00 in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $42.69.

Bath & Body Works Trading Up 4.5 %

BBWI traded up $1.26 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $28.97. 2,124,532 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,737,339. The company has a market cap of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 7.06, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.69. The firm's fifty day moving average is $31.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.88. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 1-year low of $24.96 and a 1-year high of $52.99.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.98%.

Bath & Body Works announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 27th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Profile

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.