Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Bought by UMB Bank n.a.

UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 180.5% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 533 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 343 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $83,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in WSM. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 536.3% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 383,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $108,345,000 after acquiring an additional 323,400 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 28.6% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 964,910 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $272,462,000 after purchasing an additional 214,669 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter worth about $58,213,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 37.5% during the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 704,919 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $223,833,000 after purchasing an additional 192,432 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 73.4% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 380,383 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $107,409,000 after buying an additional 161,000 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $144.35 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.73, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.74. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.56 and a 12-month high of $174.26. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $141.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $146.51.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.01%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total value of $5,810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,766,978.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total transaction of $5,810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,030,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,766,978.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $232.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.83.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.