Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Boosts Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its Williams-Sonoma stake by 1.4% in the first quarter, bringing its holding to 1,479,064 shares valued at about $269.6 million.
• Williams-Sonoma reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $1.93 per share versus the $1.80 estimate and revenue of $1.81 billion, up 4.4% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share, payable August 21, and analysts currently have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $213.12.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,479,064 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 20,886 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 1.24% of Williams-Sonoma worth $269,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% in the fourth 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 period. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC boosted its position 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 buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Williams-Sonoma from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Argus set a $230.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays set a $190.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Evercore set a $200.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $213.12.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM stock opened at $222.35 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $165.51 and a 1 year high of $244.65. The company has a market cap of $26.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.90, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $213.74 and a 200 day moving average of $202.24.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.04%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,524 shares in the company, valued at $184,704,800. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $254,080.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,962,117.33. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 36,634 shares of company stock worth $6,812,283 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Company 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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