National Pension Service Has $68.78 Million Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

National Pension Service boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 7.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 385,107 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 27,104 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.32% of Williams-Sonoma worth $68,776,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth $37,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 66.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 760.0% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 25.1% during 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $203.89 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $24.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.83, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average of $185.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $191.90. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $152.20 and a 52-week high of $222.00.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The business's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total value of $5,904,037.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,166,688.32. The trade was a 48.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of Williams-Sonoma 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 106,370 shares of company stock valued at $19,720,823. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus set a $230.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Barclays set a $190.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $209.06.

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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