Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Acquires 3,750 Shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 312,389 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,750 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in Bath & Body Works were worth $9,972,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 26,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $858,000 after purchasing an additional 3,007 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC bought a new stake in Bath & Body Works during the 3rd quarter worth $30,537,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 227.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 25,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $801,000 after purchasing an additional 17,423 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 59.8% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 374,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,959,000 after purchasing an additional 140,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Bath & Body Works by 124.8% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 54,709 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 30,369 shares in the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Bath & Body Works stock opened at $35.92 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.76, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.79. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 52-week low of $26.20 and a 52-week high of $52.99. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $30.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.65.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.02. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.43% and a negative return on equity of 44.03%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gina Boswell bought 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $29.64 per share, for a total transaction of $177,840.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 242,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,202,134.68. This trade represents a 2.53 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on BBWI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James dropped their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (down from $52.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Bath & Body Works from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Bath & Body Works currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.88.

Bath & Body Works Company Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc operates a specialty retailer of home fragrance, body care, and soaps and sanitizer products. It sells its products under the Bath & Body Works, White Barn, and other brand names through retail stores and e-commerce sites located in the United States and Canada, as well as through international stores operated by partners under franchise, license, and wholesale arrangements.