IFM Investors Pty Ltd Invests $3.74 Million in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 11,774 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,739,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WSM. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on WSM shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $154.00 to $263.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $220.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $248.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at $143,433,123.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In 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.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM traded up $0.48 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $282.16. The company had a trading volume of 484,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 810,698. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $275.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $218.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.44 and a 52-week high of $319.78.

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

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.02%.

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.