Quantitative Investment Management LLC Has $564,000 Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC has significantly reduced its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. by 91.9%, now holding 3,572 shares valued at $564,000.
• Vanguard Group Inc. and other institutional investors have increased their holdings, with Vanguard owning 15.6 million shares valued at approximately $2.47 billion after a 21.8% increase.
• Recent analyst reports show varying opinions on Williams-Sonoma, with target prices ranging from $184 to $230 and an overall average rating of "Hold" with a target price of $189.65.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 91.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,572 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 40,287 shares during the quarter. Quantitative Investment Management LLC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WSM shares. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $205.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $181.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $160.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $179.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $197.41.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM traded down $4.45 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $187.72. The stock had a trading volume of 1,694,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,513,679. The business's 50 day moving average is $183.30 and its 200 day moving average is $172.51. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.33 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98. The stock has a market cap of $23.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.47.

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

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.90%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

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

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.