Trexquant Investment LP Raises Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. by 65.6%, increasing its holdings to approximately 166,038 shares valued at $26.25 million as per the latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Pacer Advisors, also significantly increased their holdings, indicating strong interest in the stock as 99.29% of it is owned by hedges and institutions.
• The company recently reported a 2.7% year-over-year revenue growth alongside earnings of $2.00 per share, surpassing estimates and suggesting a positive outlook in its financial performance.

Trexquant Investment LP lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 65.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 166,038 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 65,769 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP owned approximately 0.14% of Williams-Sonoma worth $26,251,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total transaction of $675,840.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,388 shares in the company, valued at $5,810,196.48. The trade was a 10.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 966,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,617,782.86. This trade represents a 3.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 38,000 shares of company stock worth $6,349,680. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 2.7%

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $192.61 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $125.33 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $182.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $172.66. The company has a market capitalization of $23.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.47.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 27th. The specialty retailer reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.79 by $0.21. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 52.79% and a net margin of 14.35%.The firm had revenue of $1.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Williams-Sonoma has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th were paid 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 payout ratio is 29.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WSM. KeyCorp increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $181.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $182.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $205.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Citigroup raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $189.65.

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.

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