Bank of New York Mellon Corp Lowers Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp reduced its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 16.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 932,346 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 189,395 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $147,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,902,382 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $352,283,000 after acquiring an additional 249,389 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $290,121,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 64.1% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 989,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $183,273,000 after buying an additional 386,500 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 645,402 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $119,516,000 after buying an additional 24,741 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $87,148,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WSM. Zelman & Associates began coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $176.75.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $169.12 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $125.33 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.45. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $162.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $175.09.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 52.79%. The firm had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.90%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.33, for a total value of $4,929,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 996,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $163,825,013.91. This represents a 2.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total transaction of $675,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,810,196.48. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,915 shares of company stock worth $6,990,946. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.