Bath & Body Works, Inc. $BBWI Shares Bought by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP raised its holdings in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 357.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,155,179 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 902,781 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Bath & Body Works were worth $29,757,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of BBWI. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in Bath & Body Works in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 217.7% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 801 shares in the last quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 24.6% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works during the third quarter worth about $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on BBWI shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Bank of America set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Monday, November 24th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $17.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research raised Bath & Body Works from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $18.00 price target (down from $43.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Friday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.71.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of BBWI stock opened at $22.73 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $22.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.68. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.27 and a 1 year high of $37.29. The firm has a market cap of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.00, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.48.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.62%.

About Bath & Body Works

Bath & Body Works, Inc is a leading specialty retailer focused on personal care, home fragrance and complementary products. Through its flagship Bath & Body Works brand, the company offers a diverse assortment of shower gels, lotions, fragrance mists, candles and home fragrance items. Its product portfolio also includes the White Barn Candle Co range of premium scented candles and diffusers. Bath & Body Works serves consumers through a combination of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms, delivering seasonal collections, limited-edition releases and signature scent lines.

Founded in 1990 as part of Limited Brands (now L Brands), Bath & Body Works opened its first store in New Albany, Ohio, and quickly expanded across the United States.