Alliancebernstein L.P. Trims Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Alliancebernstein L.P. decreased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 175,800 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 8,956 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.14% of Williams-Sonoma worth $32,555,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WSM. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 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. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 120,720 shares of company stock valued at $21,828,609. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on WSM shares. Wedbush cut their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Robert W. Baird raised Williams-Sonoma from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $170.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price 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, March 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $178.93.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE WSM traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $147.95. The company had a trading volume of 1,802,890 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,062,615. The stock has a market cap of $18.27 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.76. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $125.33 and a one year high of $219.98. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $179.22 and its 200-day moving average price is $173.66.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.44 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This is a boost 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Williams-Sonoma Company 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.