Xponance Inc. Purchases 1,946 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,548 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 1,946 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.'s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $5,287,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM traded up $6.67 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $170.32. The stock had a trading volume of 2,403,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,917,784. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.97 billion, a PE ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $125.33 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $197.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $172.60.

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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 (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.44 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost 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 of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the company'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 in the company, valued at $9,014,116.16. This represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at $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. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WSM. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 report on Thursday. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $230.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average 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.