Pacer Advisors Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 94.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 25,933 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 457,268 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $5,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $212,107,000. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 184.3% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 861,236 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $167,927,000 after purchasing an additional 558,311 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 740.4% in the second quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 591,690 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $96,664,000 after purchasing an additional 521,283 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 38,589.3% during the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 451,891 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $71,444,000 after purchasing an additional 450,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 30.6% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,741,639 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $284,532,000 after purchasing an additional 407,929 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Argus set a $212.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $198.71.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 17,839 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.51, for a total transaction of $3,184,439.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 859,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $153,355,798.88. This represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of WSM stock opened at $187.17 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.55. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.07 and a 52-week high of $219.98. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $186.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $186.68.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.The company had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.86 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th 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, January 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.04%.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

Williams‑Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi‑brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher‑end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.