NewEdge Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 91.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,654 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,707 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,596,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WSM. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 520.0% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 93 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total transaction of $6,258,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,070,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,551,066.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total transaction of $6,258,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,070,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,551,066.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 91,100 shares of company stock valued at $13,563,526 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM opened at $149.67 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $141.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.86. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $71.56 and a 1 year high of $174.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.74.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 51.57%. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.56 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $158.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wedbush dropped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.17.

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.