Cerity Partners LLC Has $2.30 Million Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 53.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,393 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,988 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $2,299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth $55,499,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 2nd quarter worth about $56,497,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $50,715,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 24.1% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,408,911 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $204,292,000 after buying an additional 273,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,782,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,145 shares of company stock valued at $12,182,219. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM stock opened at $279.69 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $268.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $212.37. The stock has a market cap of $17.97 billion, a PE ratio of 19.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $109.44 and a one year high of $319.78.

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

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, March 15th. Telsey Advisory Group upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $260.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $248.06.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.