Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by UniSuper Management Pty Ltd

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd reduced its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 60.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,400 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,730 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WSM. State Street Corp lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after buying an additional 2,777,339 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,436 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $160,537,000 after acquiring an additional 792,068 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $158,085,000 after purchasing an additional 467,407 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 118.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 622,279 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $96,403,000 after purchasing an additional 337,564 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $158.05 on Tuesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $125.33 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $193.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $173.97. The company has a market cap of $19.46 billion, a PE ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.44 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on WSM. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $177.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total value of $4,973,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,018,374 shares in the company, valued at $168,826,041.72. This trade represents a 2.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 112,720 shares of company stock valued at $20,616,369. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.