Telos Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Telos Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 10.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,395 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,190 shares during the quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $5,326,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $55,499,000. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 2nd quarter valued at $56,497,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter valued at $50,715,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,408,911 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $204,292,000 after purchasing an additional 273,424 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $29,782,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $261.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $154.00 to $263.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at $2,013,591.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,433,123.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,013,591.96. 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. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 0.0 %

NYSE WSM traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $282.48. 387,761 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,034,783. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.44 and a 12 month high of $319.78. The company has a 50 day moving average of $265.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $211.40.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.06 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 12.25% and a return on equity of 55.15%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.50 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a $1.13 dividend. This is a positive change 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.71%.

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.