Truist Financial Corp Raises Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Key Points

• Truist Financial boosted its stake in Williams‑Sonoma by 8.8% in Q4 to 446,708 shares (~$79.78M), about 0.37% of the company.
• Results and payout: WSM beat EPS estimates ($3.04 vs. $2.90) while revenue fell 4.3% YoY, and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 (annualized $3.04, ~1.7% yield).
• Analyst sentiment: The consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with a $209.56 target, and several firms have recently raised price targets or upgraded the stock (including Goldman Sachs).

Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 446,708 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 36,135 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp owned about 0.37% of Williams-Sonoma worth $79,778,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WSM. Boston Partners bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth about $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew 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 worth $443,566,000 after purchasing an additional 532,995 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $93,439,000 after buying an additional 466,804 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $117,373,000 after buying an additional 453,214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $64,418,000 after acquiring an additional 339,771 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $175.81 on Tuesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $147.39 and a 1 year high of $222.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $189.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.94.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.14. The business 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 period in the previous year, the business earned $3.28 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.83%.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total transaction of $3,660,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 786,537 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $143,967,732.48. This trade represents a 2.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 71,370 shares of company stock worth $13,268,623 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on WSM. Citigroup upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $188.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WSM? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.