DnB Asset Management AS Has $37.02 Million Position in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

DnB Asset Management AS increased its position in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 18.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 954,830 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 149,453 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS owned 0.44% of Bath & Body Works worth $37,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,199,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,093,306,000 after purchasing an additional 208,036 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 17,496.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,516,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,315,000 after buying an additional 2,501,828 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter valued at $73,572,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,704,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,088,000 after buying an additional 195,813 shares during the period. Finally, Erste Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,585,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,546,000 after buying an additional 5,035 shares in the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bath & Body Works Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of BBWI opened at $31.93 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.84 billion, a PE ratio of 7.79, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 $35.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.00.

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

Bath & Body Works announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 27th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 6.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BBWI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Bath & Body Works from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Bath & Body Works from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Bath & Body Works from $43.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.06.

Bath & Body Works Company 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.