Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Takes Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 3,876 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $903,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Ballast Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 229.4% in the 1st quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM stock opened at $234.74 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.29, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $254.89. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $232.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $208.00.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WSM. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $248.00 price objective (up from $200.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Barclays set a $190.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Credit Suisse Group set a $261.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $234.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.39, for a total value of $128,615.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,975,846.05. The trade was a 2.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 3,156 shares of company stock worth $738,699 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.