Cibc World Markets Corp Sells 1,778 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Cibc World Markets Corp cut its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 23.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,717 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,778 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,059,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WSM. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $163.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $20.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $197.13 and its 200-day moving average is $172.03. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.44 EPS. Analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $177.93.

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.