Maven Securities LTD Takes $6 Million Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Maven Securities LTD bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 25,754 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $6,003,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 21,796.7% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 36,913,716 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $8,604,587,000 after acquiring an additional 36,745,135 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter worth $2,656,062,000. Aristotle Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 22.0% during the first quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 11,140,471 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,031,242,000 after purchasing an additional 2,009,032 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at $316,920,000. Finally, Boston Partners purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter valued at $254,778,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of WSM opened at $227.90 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.51 and a 52-week high of $254.89. The stock has a market cap of $26.84 billion, a PE ratio of 23.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $232.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.02.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The specialty retailer reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.93 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.73% and a return on equity of 53.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.00 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th were paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $260.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Evercore set a $245.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Seaport Research Partners reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Argus increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $245.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,975,846.05. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 2,634 shares of company stock valued at $632,696. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma 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.