California Public Employees Retirement System Boosts Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 8.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 241,412 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,650 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $44,017,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its holdings in 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. MidFirst Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 229.4% in the 1st quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Barclays set a $190.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $212.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $254,080.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,962,117.33. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $3,452,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 938,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,998,627.64. The trade was a 2.09% 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 have sold 36,634 shares of company stock valued at $6,812,283. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $223.96 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $211.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $201.64. The company has a market capitalization of $26.37 billion, a PE ratio of 25.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.49. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $165.51 and a 1-year high of $244.65.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 53.29%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.04%.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.