Bath Body shares dip as guidance for current quarter falls short; Q4 results ahead

Investing.com -- Bath&Body Works (NYSE:BBWI) shares dipped around 2% in Thursday's premarket trade after the retailer issued a below-consensus forecast for the first quarter of fiscal 2025.

For fiscal Q4 2024, the company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.09, exceeding analyst expectations of $2.04. Revenue for the period totaled $2.8 billion, slightly ahead of the $2.78 billion consensus estimate.

In-store sales across the US and Canada totaled $2.11 billion, exceeding projections of $2.08 billion.

Direct sales in the region came in at $595 million, falling short of the $623.2 million estimate. International sales came in at $84 million, below the expected $89.1 million.

Bath&Body Works reported a fourth-quarter operating income of $678 million, down 2.6% year-over-year but above the consensus forecast of $671.2 million.

“Our team delivered strong performance that exceeded expectations on both the top and bottom line in the critical fourth quarter," said Gina Boswell, CEO of Bath&Body Works. "This success was driven by our product innovation, strong execution and the outstanding customer experience provided by our associates.”

"As we enter 2025, we have a lot to be excited about, and we are eager to build on our momentum," he added. 

On the guidance, the company expects EPS to be between $0.36 and $0.43 in fiscal Q1 2025, missing the consensus projection of $0.44. Revenue is forecasted at $1.384 billion, also below expectations of $1.422 billion.

For the full year, Bath&Body Works anticipates EPS between $3.25 and $3.60, compared with the consensus of $3.26. The company expects revenue of $7.307 billion, slightly above the forecast of $7.295 billion.