Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI)

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 32,335 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 108% compared to the average daily volume of 15,509 call options.

Bath & Body Works Stock Up 8.7%

Shares of Bath & Body Works stock traded up $1.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $16.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 12,245,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,932,433. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.02, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.53. Bath & Body Works has a 1-year low of $14.27 and a 1-year high of $41.87. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $28.00.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 9.88% and a negative return on equity of 48.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. Bath & Body Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.870- EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 1.700- EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 21st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bath & Body Works

In other Bath & Body Works news, Director Lucy Brady acquired 3,470 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.40 per share, for a total transaction of $49,968.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 17,482 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,740.80. This trade represents a 24.76% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen D. Steinour bought 6,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $14.86 per share, for a total transaction of $99,562.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 48,175 shares in the company, valued at $715,880.50. This trade represents a 16.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have bought a total of 33,513 shares of company stock valued at $500,442 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 235.8% during the 1st quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 111,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,380,000 after buying an additional 78,280 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Bath & Body Works in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $807,000. Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 22.8% during the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 40,423 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,226,000 after purchasing an additional 7,505 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 8.9% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 27,091 shares of the company’s stock valued at $821,000 after acquiring an additional 2,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 53,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,625,000 after buying an additional 809 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $33.00 to $25.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group downgraded shares of Bath & Body Works from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $38.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, New Street Research set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.84.

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.