Weeks after crushing earnings, Victoria's Secret parent L Brands (NYSE: LB) announced it was taking a series of actions that would bolster shareholder value. The company, which also owns the Bath & Body Works chain, said it was paying back more than $1 billion in debt, reinstating its dividend, and would start buying back its stock again. The annual dividend of $0.60 per share will commence with the quarterly payout in June. Image source: L Brands. L Brands continues to explore ways to shed the Victoria's Secret chain. While a spinoff into a stand-alone company is still in the works, the possibility of a sale to private equity or some other buyer remains open. Either way, a separation will occur before the fall. Board chair Sarah Nash said in a statement, "The actions being announced today further support our effort to decrease leverage and enhance returns to shareholders, while better positioning the Bath & Body Works and Victoria's Secret businesses for separation in August." The retailer is repaying $1.035 billion worth of debt by calling in $285 million of its outstanding bonds that come due in February 2022, and all of the outstanding secured bonds totaling $750 million that are due in July 2025. L Brands says it will use $1.1 billion of its cash on hand to complete the repayment. The board also authorized a new stock repurchase plan in the amount of $500 million to replace the buyback program that was suspended a year ago. That plan had $79 million remaining on it. The dividend was also suspended last year, and the pay of executives from the senior vice president level and above was cut by 20%, while cash compensation for the board and then-chair and CEO Les Wexner was eliminated. 10 stocks we like better than L BrandsWhen investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and L Brands wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of February 24, 2021 Rich Duprey has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source