Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Acquires 2,130 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 43.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 7,075 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,130 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in WSM. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,360,384,000 after acquiring an additional 3,695,837 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,436 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $160,537,000 after purchasing an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 104.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,105,336 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $171,239,000 after buying an additional 565,745 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $165.46 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $125.33 and a one year high of $219.98. The firm has a market cap of $20.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $195.51 and its 200-day moving average is $173.12.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.44 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WSM shares. UBS Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, March 17th. Wedbush reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.93.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.