Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Goodman Advisory Group LLC

Goodman Advisory Group LLC cut its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 34.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 8,686 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 4,494 shares during the period. Goodman Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WSM. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 863.6% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 229.8% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 277 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 2.1 %

Williams-Sonoma stock traded down $5.98 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $282.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,231,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 849,937. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $265.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $211.40. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.44 and a 12 month high of $319.78. The company has a market capitalization of $18.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.70.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.06 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 12.25% and a return on equity of 55.15%. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 24.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total transaction of $5,674,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total transaction of $5,674,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,145 shares of company stock worth $12,182,219. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSM has been the topic of several research reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $261.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $260.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.06.

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.