2,691,268 Shares in Bath & Body Works, Inc. $BBWI Purchased by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 2.69 million Bath & Body Works shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $62.25 million and representing a 1.34% stake. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 95.14% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $22.13; Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to “Sell,” while other firms maintained neutral or overweight views.
• Bath & Body Works beat quarterly earnings expectations with $0.62 in EPS and $1.51 billion in revenue, although revenue declined 2.3% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, implying a 4.6% yield.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,691,268 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,249,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 1.34% of Bath & Body Works as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in BBWI. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 1.2% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 49,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $920,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Bath & Body Works by 35.5% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 30.0% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,643 shares of the company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 14,735 shares of the company's stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works by 2.4% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 42,000 shares of the company's stock worth $784,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. 95.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on BBWI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Bath & Body Works from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price target for the company from $23.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Bath & Body Works from $25.00 to $23.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $22.13.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

BBWI stock opened at $17.41 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.43. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.27 and a 1 year high of $27.40.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.38. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 10.83% and a negative return on equity of 53.48%. The firm had revenue of $1.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Bath & Body Works has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.070-0.120 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.600-2.800 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 2.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Bath & Body Works's payout ratio is 20.83%.

Bath & Body Works Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on personal care and home-fragrance products. Its offerings include body lotions and creams, shower gels, fragrance mists, hand soaps and sanitizers, candles, home fragrances, and related seasonal merchandise. The company markets products under the Bath & Body Works and White Barn names.

The company sells its products through a network of company-operated stores, its websites, and other direct channels. Its retail operations primarily serve customers in the United States and Canada, while international markets are reached through franchised, licensed, and other distribution arrangements.

Bath & Body Works traces its origins to 1990 and was formerly part of L Brands, Inc It became an independent publicly traded company in 2021 following the separation of L Brands' Victoria's Secret business.

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