U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New $1.99 Million Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 12,607 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,993,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 11,225 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,079,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 396 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 2,575 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. First Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 5.1% in the first quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 1,463 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $231,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 6,969 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,291,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $201.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Wedbush reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Baird R W upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Zelman & Associates assumed coverage on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set an "underperform" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $176.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 4,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $168.96, for a total value of $675,840.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 34,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,810,196.48. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.33, for a total value of $4,929,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 996,927 shares in the company, valued at $163,825,013.91. This trade represents a 2.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 42,915 shares of company stock worth $6,990,946. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:WSM traded down $1.53 during trading on Friday, hitting $174.97. 837,573 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,968,179. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $163.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $174.93. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.33 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The company has a market cap of $21.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.45.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $1.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.48 EPS. Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors 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 yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.90%.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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.