Andra AP fonden Makes New Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Andra AP fonden bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 238,600 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $42,612,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WSM. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $316,920,000. Boston Partners bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $443,566,000 after purchasing an additional 532,995 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $93,439,000 after acquiring an additional 466,804 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $117,373,000 after acquiring an additional 453,214 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at $4,494,833.99. The trade was a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total value of $5,904,037.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 34,138 shares in the company, valued at $6,166,688.32. The trade was a 48.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 106,892 shares of company stock worth $19,826,826 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Weiss Ratings lowered Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.06.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $218.62 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.51. The business’s fifty day moving average is $190.93 and its 200 day moving average is $193.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $152.20 and a fifty-two week high of $222.00.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.Williams-Sonoma’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.34 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 29.56%.

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.