Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group raised its stake in Williams‑Sonoma by 1.7% in Q4 to 1,014,643 shares (about $181.2M), representing 0.85% of the company at period end.
• Insiders have been net sellers: CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares (~$5.9M) and insiders sold 71,370 shares worth $13.27M in the past 90 days; insiders now own 1.10% while institutional ownership is 99.29%.
• Dividend and results: Williams‑Sonoma raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 (from $0.66), a $3.04 annualized payout (1.7% yield), and reported an EPS beat of $3.04 vs. $2.90 despite revenue declining 4.3% year‑over‑year to $2.36B.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,014,643 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 17,229 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.85% of Williams-Sonoma worth $181,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WSM. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $443,566,000 after buying an additional 532,995 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $93,439,000 after buying an additional 466,804 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $117,373,000 after buying an additional 453,214 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $64,418,000 after buying an additional 339,771 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma 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 transaction of $5,904,037.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,166,688.32. The trade was a 48.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 71,370 shares of company stock worth $13,268,623 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $180.22 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $147.39 and a 1-year high of $222.00. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $189.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $192.87. The company has a market cap of $21.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.14. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.45% and a net margin of 13.94%.The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.28 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WSM shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Williams-Sonoma from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $205.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $185.00 to $218.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned 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 $209.56.

Williams-Sonoma 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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