Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Acquired by Norden Group LLC

Norden Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 56.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,823 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,019 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the 3rd 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. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WSM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $154.00 to $263.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, March 15th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley raised Williams-Sonoma from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $155.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $260.00 to $320.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value 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 $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,145 shares of company stock worth $12,182,219 over the last quarter. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of WSM opened at $286.91 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.44 and a 52-week high of $319.78. The firm has a market cap of $18.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.69, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.70. The business’s 50 day moving average is $277.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $220.28.

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

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company 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 is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 31.02%.

Williams-Sonoma 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.