Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,441 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 7,418 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $15,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $316,920,000. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at $254,778,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 86.0% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,117,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $199,506,000 after acquiring an additional 516,593 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position 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 valued at $93,439,000 after purchasing an additional 466,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $64,418,000 after purchasing an additional 339,771 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of several research reports. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $212.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total value of $254,080.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,717 shares in the company, valued at $4,962,117.33. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total value of $3,452,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 938,524 shares in the company, valued at $161,998,627.64. This represents a 2.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 36,634 shares of company stock valued at $6,812,283. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $228.61 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $165.51 and a fifty-two week high of $244.65. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $201.05. The company has a market cap of $26.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.60, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 34.04%.

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.