Great Lakes Advisors LLC Takes $2.21 Million Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors purchased 9,461 Williams-Sonoma shares worth approximately $2.21 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 99.29% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with a consensus price target of $231.88; several firms recently raised their targets, including Telsey Advisory Group to $255.
• Williams-Sonoma exceeded quarterly expectations with EPS of $1.93 and revenue of $1.81 billion, while revenue increased 4.4% year over year. The company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share, yielding about 1.3%.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 9,461 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $2,205,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 1,844.3% in the first quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 47,733 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $8,703,000 after purchasing an additional 45,278 shares during the last quarter. Little House Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter valued at $801,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5,019.6% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 89,388 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $15,964,000 after buying an additional 87,642 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $1,173,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 23.8% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 294,598 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $52,612,000 after buying an additional 56,578 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on WSM. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $248.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Argus set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Barclays set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $231.88.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $3,000,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,524 shares in the company, valued at $184,704,800. This represents a 1.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.39, for a total transaction of $128,615.58. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,975,846.05. This trade represents a 2.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 18,156 shares of company stock worth $3,738,699 in the last three months. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM opened at $237.34 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $27.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.50. The firm's fifty day moving average is $232.33 and its 200 day moving average is $207.75. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.51 and a fifty-two week high of $254.89.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

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

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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