Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Securian Asset Management Inc.

Securian Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 31.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,520 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,031 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,031,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 123.6% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on WSM shares. 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 report on Thursday, March 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $182.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wedbush dropped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Baird R W raised Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $176.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 966,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $162,617,782.86. This represents a 3.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 value of $675,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,810,196.48. This represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 72,915 shares of company stock valued at $12,036,346. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM stock traded up $0.22 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $170.42. 1,082,269 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,957,143. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $164.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $174.39. The stock has a market cap of $20.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.45. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.33 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98.

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

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.90%.

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.