Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Stock Position Lowered by Royce & Associates LP

Key Points

• Royce & Associates LP cut its Williams-Sonoma stake by 43.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 8,209 shares and ending with 10,605 shares valued at about $1.89 million.
• Several analysts remain constructive on the stock, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $209.06, though some firms recently trimmed their targets.
• Williams-Sonoma posted better-than-expected quarterly results, reporting EPS of $1.93 versus the $1.80 estimate and raising its dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.66.

Royce & Associates LP lessened its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 43.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,605 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 8,209 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,894,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 432.7% in the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,172 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 952 shares during the last quarter. Eukles Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 12,903 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,304,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. Allstate Corp grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 97.7% in the 4th quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 8,929 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,595,000 after acquiring an additional 4,413 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 10,994 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,963,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,662 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WSM shares. Barclays set a $190.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Argus set a $230.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $209.06.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. 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 owned 923,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $184,704,800. This trade represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,419 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.45, for a total value of $267,410.55. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,433,306.10. The trade was a 3.99% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 106,370 shares of company stock valued at $19,720,823. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of WSM stock opened at $203.89 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.20 and a 1-year high of $222.00. The company has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.49. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $185.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $191.90.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is 29.56%.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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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