Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Increases Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 61.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,305 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,784 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,353,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $290,121,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 19,941.2% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 495,619 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $91,779,000 after purchasing an additional 493,146 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth $87,148,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $158,085,000 after acquiring an additional 467,407 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 64.1% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 989,700 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $183,273,000 after acquiring an additional 386,500 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM traded up $1.58 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $152.77. The stock had a trading volume of 1,006,067 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,060,861. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $125.33 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $165.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $173.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.07, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.76.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.44 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 915 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.69, for a total value of $129,646.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,572,715.72. This represents a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 8,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total transaction of $1,212,240.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,505 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,501,002.65. This trade represents a 32.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 76,635 shares of company stock valued at $12,609,055 over the last quarter. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wedbush cut their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective 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. Baird R W raised Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $179.06.

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.