Traders Purchase Large Volume of Bath & Body Works Put Options (NYSE:BBWI)

Key Points

• Unusually heavy bearish options activity: Investors purchased 23,399 put options on Bath & Body Works, roughly 550% above the average daily volume of 3,601 contracts.
• Shares declined to $18.41 during Tuesday trading, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $0.32 and revenue of $1.38 billion, both slightly exceeding analyst expectations. Revenue nevertheless fell 3.2% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: The stock has a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $22.57. Bath & Body Works also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.20 per share, implying a 4.3% annualized yield.

Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 23,399 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 550% compared to the average daily volume of 3,601 put options.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

Shares of BBWI traded down $0.76 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $18.41. 2,887,380 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,652,234. The company has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 5.18, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.38. The firm's 50 day moving average is $20.46 and its 200-day moving average is $20.06. Bath & Body Works has a 52 week low of $14.27 and a 52 week high of $32.32.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 10.03% and a negative return on equity of 45.34%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.49 earnings per share. Bath & Body Works has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.300-0.300 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 2.400-2.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Bath & Body Works will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. Bath & Body Works's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.47%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BBWI. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in Bath & Body Works during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Activest Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Bath & Body Works by 217.7% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,169 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 801 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 42.6% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,897 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares during the period. Finally, Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Bath & Body Works during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. 95.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on BBWI. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Bath & Body Works from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Bath & Body Works in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Citigroup raised Bath & Body Works from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $25.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Bath & Body Works from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $23.00 to $19.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Bath & Body Works from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.57.

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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