Hsbc Holdings PLC Acquires 80,473 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. by 30.5%, acquiring an additional 80,473 shares during the first quarter, totaling 344,048 shares valued at approximately $54.4 million.
• Williams-Sonoma recently reported earnings of $1.85 per share, surpassing estimates and showing a 4.2% year-over-year revenue growth to $1.73 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, yielding 1.3%, with a payout ratio of 29.90% for its investors.

Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 30.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 344,048 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 80,473 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.28% of Williams-Sonoma worth $54,378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of WSM stock opened at $196.82 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $125.33 and a twelve month high of $219.98. The company has a market cap of $24.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $179.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $172.96.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 52.79% and a net margin of 14.35%.The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.48 EPS. Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WSM shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. KeyCorp raised Williams-Sonoma from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $181.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $201.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $180.18.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.18, for a total transaction of $5,045,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 966,927 shares in the company, valued at $162,617,782.86. This represents a 3.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,810,196.48. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 68,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,279,580. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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