107,674 Shares in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Acquired by Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 107,674 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $19,632,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5,019.6% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 89,388 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $15,964,000 after purchasing an additional 87,642 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 1,844.3% in the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 47,733 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,703,000 after purchasing an additional 45,278 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 972,810 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $174,473,000 after buying an additional 89,779 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings 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 worth $52,612,000 after buying an additional 56,578 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $1,173,000. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $228.61 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $209.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $201.05. The company has a market cap of $26.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.49. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $165.51 and a 1 year high of $244.65.

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

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on WSM shares. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Evercore set a $200.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 price target (up from $220.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. One research 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.65.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.