California Public Employees Retirement System Decreases Stake in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 416,643 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,689 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.18% of Bath & Body Works worth $17,982,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Front Row Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in Bath & Body Works in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Bath & Body Works in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Stock Performance

BBWI opened at $46.38 on Tuesday. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 1 year low of $27.30 and a 1 year high of $50.34. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.43 billion, a PE ratio of 12.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.86.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.21. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 11.82% and a negative return on equity of 37.01%. The company had revenue of $2.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.86 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. Bath & Body Works’s payout ratio is currently 20.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bath & Body Works news, insider Thomas E. Mazurek sold 4,285 shares of Bath & Body Works stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.89, for a total transaction of $209,493.65. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 45,992 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,248,548.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on BBWI. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Bath & Body Works from $30.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $49.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays cut Bath & Body Works from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $37.00 to $45.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.73.

Bath & Body Works Profile

Bath & Body Works, Inc operates a specialty retailer of home fragrance, body care, and soaps and sanitizer products. It sells its products under the Bath & Body Works, White Barn, and other brand names through retail stores and e-commerce sites located in the United States and Canada, as well as through international stores operated by partners under franchise, license, and wholesale arrangements.