Bath & Body Works Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:BBWI)

Key Points

• Investors bought an unusually high number of puts — 6,681 put options were purchased on Monday, about a 59% increase versus the typical volume of 4,207 puts.
• Analysts are mixed but cautious: the stock has a consensus "Hold" rating with a consensus price target of $23.00, after several firms modestly raised targets and kept neutral/hold views.
• Institutional investors have materially increased exposure — firms like AQR, American Century and Jupiter added large positions, and overall 95.14% of the stock is held by institutions.

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 6,681 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 59% compared to the typical volume of 4,207 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Bath & Body Works from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group increased their target price on Bath & Body Works from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Bath & Body Works from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $21.00 to $25.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 132.5% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 11,445,928 shares of the company's stock worth $229,834,000 after purchasing an additional 6,523,960 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 2,204.1% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,174,370 shares of the company's stock worth $133,292,000 after purchasing an additional 4,949,796 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 553.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 3,714,499 shares of the company's stock worth $95,685,000 after purchasing an additional 3,145,797 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth $55,504,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth $54,785,000. 95.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BBWI traded down $0.85 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $19.24. 2,183,415 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,555,455. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $20.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $21.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.08, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.50. Bath & Body Works has a one year low of $14.27 and a one year high of $34.66.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 4th. The company reported $2.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $2.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.59 billion. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 45.60% and a net margin of 8.90%.The company's revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 EPS. Bath & Body Works has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.240-0.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.400-2.650 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Bath & Body Works will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 20th. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.40%.

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.

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