Amundi Reduces Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Amundi reduced its Williams-Sonoma stake by 10.8% in the first quarter, selling 61,149 shares and retaining 504,457 shares valued at approximately $92 million. Institutional investors collectively own 99.29% of the company.
• Williams-Sonoma reported quarterly EPS of $1.93, beating estimates of $1.80, while revenue rose 4.4% year over year to $1.81 billion. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% yield.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $215.47, while insiders sold roughly $6.8 million of stock over the past three months. WSM recently traded at $228.89.

Amundi cut its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 10.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 504,457 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 61,149 shares during the period. Amundi owned approximately 0.43% of Williams-Sonoma worth $91,976,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WSM. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. MidFirst Bank acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 229.4% during the 1st quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 1.9%

NYSE:WSM opened at $228.89 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $165.51 and a 52 week high of $244.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.95 billion, a PE ratio of 25.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.49. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $221.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $203.96.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $254,080.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 21,717 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,962,117.33. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,704,800. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 36,634 shares of company stock worth $6,812,283 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WSM. Evercore set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Argus set a $230.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.47.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

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.

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