Norinchukin Bank The Takes Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Norinchukin Bank has acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc., purchasing 4,733 shares valued at approximately $748,000 in the first quarter.
• Analyst ratings on Williams-Sonoma vary, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $185.59, while some analysts have given the stock buy ratings.
• The company recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.85, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 paid to shareholders.

Norinchukin Bank The purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 4,733 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $748,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,630,310 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,471,152,000 after buying an additional 2,797,562 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $85,075,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 1,272.6% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 512,846 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $81,081,000 after acquiring an additional 475,484 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 16,087.6% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 264,343 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $41,793,000 after purchasing an additional 262,710 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,076,959 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $170,267,000 after acquiring an additional 254,550 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $187.77. 1,611,765 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,532,006. The business's fifty day moving average price is $183.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $172.16. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $125.33 and a 52-week high of $219.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.10 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 1.47.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.79 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $1.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 54.47% and a net margin of 14.54%.The business's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th were paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is 29.04%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.18, for a total value of $5,045,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 966,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $162,617,782.86. This trade represents a 3.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total transaction of $675,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,810,196.48. The trade was a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,000 shares of company stock worth $6,349,680. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 25th. Barclays set a $166.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $168.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $198.35.

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.