Cwm LLC Raises Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Cwm LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 98.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,543 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,754 shares during the quarter. Cwm LLC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $876,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 23.6% in the first quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 12,505 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,977,000 after buying an additional 2,390 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 6.7% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,884 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $930,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 15.7% in the first quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG now owns 1,416 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Genus Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 195.0% in the first quarter. Genus Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,600 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $253,000 after purchasing an additional 3,285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.4% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 40,100 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $6,340,000 after purchasing an additional 3,460 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $178.87 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $125.33 and a one year high of $219.98. The stock's fifty day moving average is $164.79 and its 200 day moving average is $174.12. The stock has a market cap of $22.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.45.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 52.79% and a net margin of 14.35%. Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.48 EPS. Analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total value of $675,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,810,196.48. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.18, for a total value of $5,045,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 966,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,617,782.86. The trade was a 3.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 72,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,906,700. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. KeyCorp raised Williams-Sonoma from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $181.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $176.75.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.