Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Acquired by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 18.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,170 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,660 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WSM. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 396 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,474 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $643,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Westmount Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 6,242 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 4,091 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,575 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of WSM opened at $147.95 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $179.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $173.66. The stock has a market cap of $18.27 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.76. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $125.33 and a 52-week high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $5.44 earnings per share. As a group, 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 will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 8,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total value of $1,212,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,501,002.65. This represents a 32.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 120,720 shares of company stock valued at $21,828,609. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on WSM shares. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wedbush decreased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $178.93.

Williams-Sonoma Company 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.