Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Acquired by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 246,066 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 8,855 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.20% of Williams-Sonoma worth $45,567,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WSM. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at $1,920,000. Vinva Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,566,000. Xponance Inc. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 28,548 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,287,000 after purchasing an additional 1,946 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,052,000. Finally, Kensington Investment Counsel LLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 51,266 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $9,493,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of WSM traded down $1.20 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $169.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,902,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,917,684. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $196.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $172.90. The stock has a market cap of $20.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

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Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is 29.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, 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 value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WSM. UBS Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $140.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $177.93.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.