Magnetar Financial LLC Purchases New Holdings in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 7,761 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $301,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Bath & Body Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 99.7% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 659 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 5,270.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,054 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 58.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 905 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 81.9% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 957 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Bath & Body Works stock opened at $30.24 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 7.38, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.89. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 12 month low of $26.21 and a 12 month high of $52.99. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.95.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.78 billion. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 44.03% and a net margin of 12.43%. Analysts predict that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is 21.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price target on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price objective (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Barclays cut 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.