15,620 Shares in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Acquired by Monument Capital Management

Monument Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 15,620 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,152,000. Williams-Sonoma comprises approximately 1.0% of Monument Capital Management's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 299 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. JGP Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,725 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,155,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 2.1% in the third quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 3,413 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,382 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock traded up $0.93 on Monday, reaching $280.13. 799,105 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,028,830. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.44 and a twelve month high of $319.78. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $269.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $214.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.69.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.06 by $0.38. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 12.25% and a return on equity of 55.15%. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.50 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $1.13 dividend. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WSM. Barclays increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded Williams-Sonoma from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $270.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $248.06.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total transaction of $5,674,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total value of $685,732.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at $15,185,328.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,145 shares of company stock worth $12,182,219. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.