Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Logan Capital Management Inc.

Logan Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 168,897 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 13,431 shares during the quarter. Williams-Sonoma accounts for 1.3% of Logan Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Logan Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of Williams-Sonoma worth $31,276,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 46.2% during the fourth quarter. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC now owns 23,950 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,435,000 after acquiring an additional 7,564 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 109,359 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $20,251,000 after purchasing an additional 5,337 shares during the period. National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 316,535 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $58,616,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 132.0% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,905 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $723,000 after buying an additional 2,222 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 114,047 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $20,728,000 after buying an additional 6,757 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WSM shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $140.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $201.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wedbush reduced their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $175.94.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of WSM traded down $2.98 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $171.46. 1,689,039 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,061,546. The company has a market capitalization of $21.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.57. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.33 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The company's 50 day moving average is $157.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.54.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.44 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total transaction of $4,973,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,018,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $168,826,041.72. This trade represents a 2.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 80,635 shares of company stock valued at $13,236,175 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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.