Mackenzie Financial Corp Raises Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 68.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,985 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 4,457 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $2,034,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Michels Family Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $844,000. Peak Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $1,009,000. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 16,526 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,060,000 after buying an additional 629 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth $389,000. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 215.4% during the 4th quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 328,579 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $60,846,000 after purchasing an additional 224,397 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $161.70 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $156.05 and a 200 day moving average of $177.35. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $125.33 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.57.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.48 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th were paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.90%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total transaction of $4,973,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,018,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $168,826,041.72. This trade represents a 2.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 36,312 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.79, for a total value of $6,020,166.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $7,690,666.52. This trade represents a 43.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 79,227 shares of company stock worth $12,962,573. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Baird R W raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $177.06.

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.