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Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Bath & Body Works logo with Retail/Wholesale background

Key Points

  • Bath & Body Works saw a significant increase in short interest in August, rising by 57.6% to a total of 15,670,000 shares.
  • Despite a 2.7% decline in stock price recently, the company reported earnings of $0.37 per share, in line with analysts' expectations.
  • The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, yielding 3.0% annually, with a low dividend payout ratio of 23.74%.
  • Five stocks we like better than Bath & Body Works.

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 15,670,000 shares, a growth of 57.6% from the August 15th total of 9,940,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 5,640,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days. Approximately 7.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 7.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 5,640,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Institutional Trading of Bath & Body Works

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBWI. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 14,732.0% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,798,108 shares of the company's stock worth $206,119,000 after purchasing an additional 6,752,274 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 267.8% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,993,173 shares of the company's stock worth $121,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,907,506 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 115.7% during the 1st quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,680,104 shares of the company's stock worth $111,581,000 after purchasing an additional 1,973,679 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Bath & Body Works during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $57,746,000. Finally, Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC lifted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 42.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 5,409,919 shares of the company's stock worth $162,081,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619,276 shares during the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Bath & Body Works Stock Down 4.5%

Shares of NYSE BBWI traded down $1.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $25.11. 10,541,740 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,282,604. Bath & Body Works has a 12 month low of $24.93 and a 12 month high of $41.87. The company's 50 day moving average price is $29.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $29.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a PE ratio of 7.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.49.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 28th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.37. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 48.43% and a net margin of 9.88%.The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Bath & Body Works has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 0.370-0.45 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 3.350-3.600 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Barclays lifted their price target on Bath & Body Works from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 29th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on Bath & Body Works from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 29th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $39.69.

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Bath & Body Works Company Profile

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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.

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