JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $238.68 Million Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 2.8% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,221,134 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 35,600 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $238,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,248,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth $227,000. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter worth $1,644,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at about $201,000. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 10.6% during the second quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total transaction of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 806,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,267,708.43. This trade represents a 4.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total transaction of $157,357.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,715,497.76. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 65,767 shares of company stock worth $12,802,440. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on WSM shares. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zelman & Associates upgraded Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $202.11.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 2.1%

NYSE WSM opened at $215.24 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $25.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.64. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $130.07 and a twelve month high of $222.00. The business’s fifty day moving average is $202.16 and its 200 day moving average is $195.85.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th were issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.04%.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams‑Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi‑brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher‑end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.