Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 34,094 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,210 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D owned about 0.05% of Williams-Sonoma worth $6,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WSM. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,013,591.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total value of $685,732.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at $15,185,328.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 41,145 shares of company stock valued at $12,182,219 over the last 90 days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $220.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $248.06.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $282.16. The stock had a trading volume of 484,355 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,013,017. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $216.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.44 and a 12 month high of $319.78.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. The company’s revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.50 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 31.02%.

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.