Qsemble Capital Management LP Boosts Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Qsemble Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 928.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,236 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,172 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 66.7% during the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 220 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 57.2% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 228 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth about $48,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $168.51 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $147.39 and a one year high of $222.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $184.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $192.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.45% and a net margin of 13.94%.Williams-Sonoma’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.28 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 958,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $191,704,800. The trade was a 1.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 71,370 shares of company stock valued at $13,268,623. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on WSM shares. Evercore set a $200.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $185.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $207.81.

Williams-Sonoma Company 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.