Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 25,600 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its Williams‑Sonoma stake by 20.6%, selling 25,600 shares and now holds 98,580 shares worth about $17.6 million.
• Williams‑Sonoma raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 (annualized $3.04, ~1.6% yield) and reported Q results with EPS of $3.04 beating estimates while revenue fell 4.3% year‑over‑year to $2.36 billion.
• Shares trade near $190 with a market cap around $22.7 billion; analysts have recently upgraded the stock and the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with an average target near $209.56.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 20.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 98,580 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 25,600 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.08% of Williams-Sonoma worth $17,605,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Boston Partners bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at approximately $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $443,566,000 after acquiring an additional 532,995 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $93,439,000 after acquiring an additional 466,804 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $117,373,000 after acquiring an additional 453,214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $64,418,000 after acquiring an additional 339,771 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $190.28 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $192.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $192.97. The stock has a market cap of $22.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.50, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.58. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $147.39 and a fifty-two week high of $222.00.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.41 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 51.45%. The company's revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.28 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is presently 29.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total transaction of $436,374.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,494,833.99. The trade was a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 958,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $191,704,800. This represents a 1.54% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,370 shares of company stock valued at $13,268,623. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $218.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $205.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $209.56.

About Williams-Sonoma

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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