UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Sells 3,730 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 60.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,400 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,730 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $444,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $825,588,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $418,223,000 after buying an additional 1,393,436 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $160,537,000 after acquiring an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 19,941.2% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 495,619 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $91,779,000 after acquiring an additional 493,146 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $158,085,000 after acquiring an additional 467,407 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

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Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 3.9 %

WSM stock traded up $6.12 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $164.99. 2,211,010 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,983,772. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $192.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $174.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.38 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.44 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective 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 decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $177.60.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 36,312 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.79, for a total value of $6,020,166.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,690,666.52. This represents a 43.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company's stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 112,720 shares of company stock valued at $20,616,369. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.