UBS Group AG Trims Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

UBS Group AG lowered its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 37.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 688,644 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 405,692 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $122,985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in WSM. Boston Partners purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth about $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% in 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 period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $93,439,000 after buying an additional 466,804 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $117,373,000 after buying an additional 453,214 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $64,418,000 after buying an additional 339,771 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total transaction of $3,660,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 786,537 shares in the company, valued at $143,967,732.48. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total transaction of $5,904,037.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 34,138 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,166,688.32. The trade was a 48.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 71,370 shares of company stock worth $13,268,623 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $188.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Evercore set a $200.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.56.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $179.94 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $147.39 and a 1 year high of $222.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $189.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $192.91. The stock has a market cap of $21.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.50.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.14. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 51.45%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.28 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.83%.

Williams-Sonoma 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.