Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Stock: Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Raises Holdings

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 76,270 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,993 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.06% of Williams-Sonoma worth $17,385,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 313.2% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 49,821 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $11,613,000 after purchasing an additional 37,764 shares during the last quarter. Little House Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at approximately $801,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 12.1% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 302,105 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $70,540,000 after purchasing an additional 32,644 shares in the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 319.2% in the second quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 6,673 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 5,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Korea Investment CORP bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,151,000. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on WSM shares. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $270.00 price objective (up from $250.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Evercore set a $255.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $259.00 price target (down from $260.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $249.17.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $262.20 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $274.45. The company has a 50 day moving average of $240.57 and a 200-day moving average of $216.79. The stock has a market cap of $30.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The specialty retailer reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.73% and a return on equity of 53.48%. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.00 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.50 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 31.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.36, for a total value of $124,945.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 19,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,708,929.28. This represents a 2.58% decrease in their position. 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, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.20, for a total value of $7,742,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 853,524 shares in the company, valued at $188,799,508.80. This represents a 3.94% 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 sold a total of 39,361 shares of company stock worth $8,738,903 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is a specialty retailer focused on home furnishings, kitchenware and related products. Its portfolio includes Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids and Teen, West Elm, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham, with offerings ranging from cookware and furniture to lighting, textiles, décor and gifts. Founded in 1956 by Chuck Williams as a cookware shop in Sonoma, California, the company has grown into a multichannel retailer. It sells through its websites and retail stores, serving customers in North America and select international markets.