Foster & Motley Inc. Makes New Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Foster & Motley Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,084 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,651,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth $2,656,062,000. Aristotle Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 22.0% during the first quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 11,140,471 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,031,242,000 after buying an additional 2,009,032 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,139,477 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,199,961,000 after buying an additional 147,780 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,664,580 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $485,833,000 after buying an additional 224,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,919,466 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $342,797,000 after buying an additional 130,940 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 approximately $184,704,800. This trade represents a 1.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $246.39, for a total value of $128,615.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,975,846.05. The trade was a 2.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,156 shares of company stock worth $3,738,699. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $242.34 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $231.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $207.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.54 billion, a PE ratio of 27.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.51 and a 52-week high of $254.89.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 53.29%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is 34.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $248.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $261.00 price target (up from $230.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings cut Williams-Sonoma from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Argus set a $230.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $231.88.

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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