Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super Reduces Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Aware Super Pty Ltd has reduced its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. by 15.3%, resulting in ownership of 117,064 shares valued at approximately $19.1 million.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Williams-Sonoma, with a new average target of $198.56 and several firms reiterating a buy or outperform rating.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.4%, with the ex-dividend date on October 17th.

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super trimmed its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 117,064 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 21,140 shares during the quarter. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super owned about 0.10% of Williams-Sonoma worth $19,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,016 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $493,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 482 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. TFB Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.5% during the first quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $203,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 13.0% in the first quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 583 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graypoint LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.5% during the first quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,791 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $757,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $168.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Argus set a $212.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $198.56.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $190.19 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $23.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.55. The business's 50 day moving average price is $197.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.83. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.33 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.79 by $0.21. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 14.54%.The company had revenue of $1.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma's revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Williams-Sonoma has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Investors of record on Friday, October 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.04%.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,153 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.84, for a total value of $626,942.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,787,999.92. This trade represents a 8.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.79, for a total value of $695,765.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,783,656.37. This trade represents a 20.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 114,153 shares of company stock valued at $22,901,008. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma 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.

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