Nuveen LLC Invests $85.08 Million in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma, purchasing 538,111 shares valued at approximately $85.08 million, representing about 0.44% ownership as of the latest reporting period.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.3%, scheduled for payment on August 22nd.
• Williams-Sonoma's most recent earnings report showed $1.85 earnings per share, exceeding estimates by $0.09, and a revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter.

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 538,111 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $85,075,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.44% of Williams-Sonoma at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Redwood Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,424,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $895,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 26.4% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 44,398 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $7,019,000 after purchasing an additional 9,266 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 10.6% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 17,402 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,751,000 after purchasing an additional 1,673 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 26.2% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 14,197 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,245,000 after buying an additional 2,945 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 2.1%

Williams-Sonoma stock traded down $4.50 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $205.70. 1,340,400 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,294,441. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $175.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $173.38. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $125.33 and a twelve month high of $219.98. The company has a market cap of $25.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 1.47.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.76 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 52.79%. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.48 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect 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 will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is currently 29.90%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total value of $675,840.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares in the company, valued at $5,810,196.48. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.33, for a total transaction of $4,929,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $163,825,013.91. The trade was a 2.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 68,000 shares of company stock worth $11,279,580. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp raised Williams-Sonoma from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $181.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Zelman & Associates assumed coverage on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $212.00 price objective (up from $182.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Thursday. 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. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of 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, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $180.18.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

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.