GS Investments Inc. Sells 2,898 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

GS Investments Inc. decreased its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 29.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,956 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,898 shares during the quarter. GS Investments Inc.'s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,288,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM stock traded up $6.67 on Monday, hitting $170.32. The company had a trading volume of 2,403,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,917,784. The stock's 50-day moving average is $197.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $172.60. The firm has a market cap of $20.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $125.33 and a twelve month high of $219.98.

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Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is 29.30%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WSM shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average 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.