Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 820,379 Shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) by 328.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,069,941 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 820,379 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.49% of Bath & Body Works worth $34,153,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BBWI. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works during the 3rd quarter worth about $8,129,000. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Bath & Body Works by 19.1% in the third quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP now owns 1,467,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,851,000 after acquiring an additional 235,173 shares during the period. Anthracite Investment Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Bath & Body Works during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,921,000. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Bath & Body Works by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 266,235 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,498,000 after acquiring an additional 40,793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Bath & Body Works by 1,078.2% during the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 49,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 45,144 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gina Boswell acquired 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $29.64 per share, with a total value of $177,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 242,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,202,134.68. This trade represents a 2.53 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BBWI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Bath & Body Works from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Bath & Body Works from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price target on Bath & Body Works from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $42.50.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

Bath & Body Works stock opened at $38.99 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $8.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.83. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.20 and a 1-year high of $52.99. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.21.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.58 billion. Bath & Body Works had a net margin of 12.43% and a negative return on equity of 44.03%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bath & Body Works Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.51%.

Bath & Body Works Company 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.