Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE

Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE lessened its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,360 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 300 shares during the period. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 863.6% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at about $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $260.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $220.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $249.31.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock traded up $3.11 during trading on Thursday, reaching $317.13. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 475,175 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,065,022. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $237.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $195.61. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $109.44 and a one year high of $319.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.66.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.06 by $0.38. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 55.15% and a net margin of 12.25%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $5.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 24.71%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,145 shares of company stock worth $10,044,174. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Williams-Sonoma 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.