Foster & Motley Inc. Takes $1.65 Million Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Foster & Motley Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 7,084 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,651,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 1,844.3% in the first quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 47,733 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $8,703,000 after acquiring an additional 45,278 shares during the period. Little House Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter valued at about $801,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5,019.6% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 89,388 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $15,964,000 after purchasing an additional 87,642 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,173,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 294,598 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,612,000 after purchasing an additional 56,578 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WSM. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $248.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Argus set a $230.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, May 29th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, July 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 price target on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $231.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $3,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,704,800. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $254,080.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,717 shares in the company, valued at $4,962,117.33. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 18,156 shares of company stock valued at $3,738,699 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $242.34 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $231.71 and a 200 day moving average of $207.33. The company has a market cap of $28.54 billion, a PE ratio of 27.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $165.51 and a 12-month high of $254.89.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.04%.

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.