Riposte Capital LLC Makes New Investment in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Riposte Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 260,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,080,000. Bath & Body Works comprises approximately 1.9% of Riposte Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Riposte Capital LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Bath & Body Works as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its stake in Bath & Body Works by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 732,008 shares of the company's stock worth $28,380,000 after buying an additional 52,471 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works during the fourth quarter worth approximately $552,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 0.7% in the 4th 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 period. Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter valued at $249,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 48.3% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 26,117 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 8,511 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company's stock.

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Bath & Body Works Stock Down 3.0 %

NYSE BBWI traded down $0.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $30.93. The stock had a trading volume of 3,958,558 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,493,882. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.03. The company has a market cap of $6.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.89. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.21 and a 52-week 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.78 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.43% and a negative return on equity of 44.03%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.98%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BBWI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $43.00 price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $46.00 price objective (up from $42.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Bath & Body Works from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $42.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on Bath & Body Works from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $45.06.

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.