Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Position Cut by FourThought Financial Partners LLC

FourThought Financial Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 3,093 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 159 shares during the period. FourThought Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $624,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of WSM. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the period. 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 worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter valued at $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,433,123.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction 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 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 in the last three months. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 4.3 %

Shares of NYSE WSM traded up $12.46 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $304.70. 1,104,285 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 809,075. The business has a 50 day moving average of $281.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $222.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.72. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.44 and a 1 year high of $319.78.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $2.28 billion during 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%. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $1.13 per share. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 31.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Williams-Sonoma from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $245.00 to $275.00 in a report on Friday. Loop Capital upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $220.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $256.19.

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.