Rossby Financial LCC Invests $233,000 in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,544 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $233,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at $33,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 123.6% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth about $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total value of $1,212,240.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,501,002.65. The trade was a 32.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.33, for a total value of $4,929,900.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 996,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $163,825,013.91. This trade represents a 2.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 50,915 shares of company stock worth $8,203,186 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE WSM traded down $0.12 on Friday, reaching $173.06. The company had a trading volume of 746,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,975,351. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $125.33 and a 1 year high of $219.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $162.09 and a 200-day moving average of $175.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 1.45.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.67 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.35% and a return on equity of 52.79%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.48 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is currently 29.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays set a $166.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Zelman & Associates started coverage on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "underperform" rating on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $176.75.

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.