Norges Bank Buys New Shares in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Norges Bank bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,774,569 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $316,920,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.49% of Williams-Sonoma as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,878 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 25.1% during the third quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 274 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 10,438 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,864,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $247,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on WSM. Wells Fargo & Company set a $190.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, May 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $209.06.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $202.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.68, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.51. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $152.20 and a 1 year high of $222.00. The business's 50-day moving average is $186.39 and its 200 day moving average is $191.96.

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

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th were issued 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total transaction of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,494,833.99. This trade represents a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total transaction of $5,904,037.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 106,370 shares of company stock worth $19,720,823. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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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