KBC Group NV Sells 112,821 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

KBC Group NV cut its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 43.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 148,715 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 112,821 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.12% of Williams-Sonoma worth $27,115,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,878 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 10,438 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,864,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arjuna Capital grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 3,564 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM opened at $221.15 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $26.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.49. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $244.65. The business’s fifty day moving average is $212.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $201.94.

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

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 923,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $184,704,800. This trade represents a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 1,112 shares of the firm’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 sale, the executive vice president owned 21,717 shares in the company, valued at $4,962,117.33. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $225.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $190.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Argus set a $230.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $212.65.

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.