Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Shares Sold by Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC

Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 7.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,911 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 495 shares during the period. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $964,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,248,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $227,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter worth about $895,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 27.3% in the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,621 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $414,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 24,595 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,532 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 2.1%

WSM opened at $194.19 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $23.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.55. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.33 and a 1 year high of $219.98. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $194.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.05.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.21. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 14.54%.The firm had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Williams-Sonoma has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 17th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is 29.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Argus set a $212.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $198.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP David Randolph King sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.60, for a total value of $3,563,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 98,560 shares in the company, valued at $20,066,816. This represents a 15.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 90,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.17, for a total value of $18,015,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 876,927 shares in the company, valued at $175,534,477.59. This trade represents a 9.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 114,153 shares of company stock valued at $22,901,008. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by 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.