Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC Invests $961,000 in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Spartan Wealth Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,269 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $961,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,139,477 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,199,961,000 after purchasing an additional 147,780 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,440,452 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $435,840,000 after buying an additional 170,991 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,919,466 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $342,797,000 after buying an additional 130,940 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $316,920,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,661,365 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $296,703,000 after buying an additional 86,807 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $225.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Barclays set a $190.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. One equities 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $212.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $228.50 on Monday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $244.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $210.86 and its 200 day moving average is $201.34. The stock has a market cap of $26.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.49.

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

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. 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.