Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Bath & Body Works, Inc. $BBWI

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Bath & Body Works, Inc. (NYSE:BBWI) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 63,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,623,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Bath & Body Works by 11.5% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,080,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $212,120,000 after buying an additional 733,000 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 5,737,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,904,000 after acquiring an additional 315,738 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Bath & Body Works by 42.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 5,409,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,081,000 after acquiring an additional 1,619,276 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Bath & Body Works by 5.3% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,203,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,322,000 after acquiring an additional 210,153 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GMT Capital Corp raised its position in Bath & Body Works by 8.8% during the second quarter. GMT Capital Corp now owns 4,067,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,847,000 after purchasing an additional 329,300 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.14% of the company’s stock.

Bath & Body Works Price Performance

BBWI opened at $21.65 on Thursday. Bath & Body Works, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.27 and a fifty-two week high of $41.87. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $20.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.66, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.51.

Bath & Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The company reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.64 billion. Bath & Body Works had a negative return on equity of 47.35% and a net margin of 9.50%.Bath & Body Works’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. Bath & Body Works has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.870- EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 1.700- EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Bath & Body Works, Inc. will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Bath & Body Works Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Bath & Body Works’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. New Street Research set a $26.00 target price on Bath & Body Works in a report on Monday, November 24th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Bath & Body Works from $35.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird set a $20.00 target price on Bath & Body Works in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Bath & Body Works from $26.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Bath & Body Works from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $39.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.53.

Bath & Body Works News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Bath & Body Works this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP says a securities class action has been filed against BBWI and is notifying investors of the case and participation details. BFA Law Notice
• Negative Sentiment: The Gross Law Firm issued a shareholder notice about a pending class action for investors who lost money on BBWI, pushing legal risk into public view. Gross Law Firm Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Rosen Law Firm and several others (Faruqi, Bronstein, Pomerantz, Bernstein Liebhard, Levi & Korsinsky, Glancy, Schall) are reminding purchasers of BBWI during the June 4, 2024–Nov 19, 2025 class period about lead?plaintiff deadlines in March — increasing the likelihood of consolidated litigation and potential claims. Rosen Law Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Faruqi & Faruqi and other plaintiff firms are investigating claims and urging investors to contact counsel before the March lead?plaintiff deadline — highlighting continuing attention from plaintiffs’ firms. Faruqi Notice
• Negative Sentiment: Graphene Investments liquidated its entire ~$2.95 million BBWI stake, signaling at least one institutional exit amid reported turnaround challenges — an event that can add selling pressure and negative sentiment. Graphene Liquidation

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Steven E. Voskuil acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $15.04 per share, with a total value of $300,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 33,925 shares in the company, valued at $510,232. The trade was a 143.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Stephen D. Steinour bought 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.86 per share, with a total value of $99,562.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 48,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,880.50. This trade represents a 16.15% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased 33,513 shares of company stock valued at $500,442 over the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Bath & Body Works Profile

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.