Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Stock Holdings Lifted by Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 1,844.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 47,733 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 45,278 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $8,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 5,019.6% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 89,388 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $15,964,000 after acquiring an additional 87,642 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 972,810 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $174,473,000 after purchasing an additional 89,779 shares during the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,605,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 294,598 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,612,000 after purchasing an additional 56,578 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $443,566,000 after buying an additional 532,995 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total transaction of $254,080.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,717 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,962,117.33. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,419 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.45, for a total transaction of $267,410.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,433,306.10. This represents a 3.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 55,320 shares of company stock worth $10,516,069. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Evercore set a $200.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Argus set a $230.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, June 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $211.47.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $227.20 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $161.76 and a 1 year high of $244.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.75 billion, a PE ratio of 25.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $203.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $198.85.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 53.29%. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.85 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.17%.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams‑Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi‑brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher‑end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.