Investors Buy High Volume of Put Options on Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI)

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 18,630 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 178% compared to the average volume of 6,690 put options.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

BBWI traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $26.58. The stock had a trading volume of 5,164,408 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,994,008. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $29.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.72. Bath & Body Works has a 1-year low of $24.96 and a 1-year high of $47.48.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 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 $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.38 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Bath & Body Works will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 27th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 6.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Bath & Body Works's payout ratio is 21.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $38.00 price target (down from $43.00) on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 30th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $44.00 to $43.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $42.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bath & Body Works

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 99.7% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 659 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. Northwest Bank & Trust Co increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Northwest Bank & Trust Co now owns 14,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 81.9% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 957 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 12,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $475,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Bankshares Inc. increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 17,232 shares of the company's stock valued at $668,000 after buying an additional 463 shares during the last quarter. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.