Machina Capital S.A.S. Invests $256,000 in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Key Points

• Machina Capital S.A.S. has made a new investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc., acquiring 1,618 shares valued at approximately $256,000 during the first quarter.
• Williams-Sonoma reported earnings per share of $1.85 for the latest quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, with a net margin of 14.35% and a revenue increase of 4.2% year-over-year.
• Recent insider trading shows CFO Jeffrey Howie and CEO Laura Alber sold significant shares in the company, indicating a 10.42% and 2.92% decrease in their ownership, respectively.

Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 1,618 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $256,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 123.6% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,810,196.48. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.18, for a total value of $5,045,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 966,927 shares in the company, valued at $162,617,782.86. The trade was a 3.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,000 shares of company stock worth $11,906,700 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WSM shares. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $170.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $201.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $205.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $178.41.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM traded up $1.26 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $181.80. 818,197 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,202,717. The firm's 50-day moving average is $165.43 and its 200-day moving average is $173.70. The stock has a market cap of $22.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.45. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.48 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.90%.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.