denkapparat Operations GmbH Acquires New Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

denkapparat Operations GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,228 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WSM. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after acquiring an additional 2,777,339 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,436 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth about $290,121,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 104.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,105,336 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $171,239,000 after purchasing an additional 565,745 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $160,537,000 after buying an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $158.75 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $193.93 and a 200 day moving average of $173.24. The firm has a market cap of $19.54 billion, a PE ratio of 18.78, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $125.33 and a one year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.30%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total value of $4,973,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,018,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $168,826,041.72. This trade represents a 2.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 112,720 shares of company stock valued at $20,616,369 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wedbush dropped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $177.93.

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.