Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Bought by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management increased its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 56,675 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,763 shares during the period. Williams-Sonoma makes up about 0.8% of Meritage Portfolio Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $11,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. AE Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth approximately $275,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 38.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 322 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 61.2% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 627 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth $153,000. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 103,900.0% during the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 1,040 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $162,000 after purchasing an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on WSM. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley raised Williams-Sonoma from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $154.00 to $263.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $248.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at $2,013,591.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total transaction of $685,732.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at $15,185,328.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total transaction of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,145 shares of company stock valued at $12,182,219 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.6 %

WSM stock traded up $1.74 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $283.42. 196,949 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,009,305. The business has a 50-day moving average of $274.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $216.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.21 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.44 and a 52 week high of $319.78.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.06 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 55.15% and a net margin of 12.25%. The company’s revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.02%.

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.