Legal & General Group Plc Decreases Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc cut its Williams-Sonoma stake by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 687,656 shares valued at about $122.8 million.
• Williams-Sonoma reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.93 topping estimates of $1.80 and revenue of $1.81 billion, up 4.4% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.66, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with a $207.94 target price.

Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 687,656 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 62,988 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.58% of Williams-Sonoma worth $122,808,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its position in 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 last quarter. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $37,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 66.7% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 220 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 760.0% in the third quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 258 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 25.1% in the third quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 274 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $3,452,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 938,524 shares in the company, valued at $161,998,627.64. This trade represents a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at $4,494,833.99. The trade was a 8.85% decrease in their position. 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 91,370 shares of company stock worth $16,720,823 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $205.88 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $185.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $191.82. The stock has a market cap of $24.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.49. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $152.20 and a fifty-two week high of $222.00.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $190.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays set a $190.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Evercore set a $200.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $207.94.

About Williams-Sonoma

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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