38,372 Shares in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Purchased by Rakuten Investment Management Inc.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 38,372 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $7,595,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 111.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 144 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 130.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth $48,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 20th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, UBS Group set a $175.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $200.76.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total value of $157,357.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,236 shares in the company, valued at $2,715,497.76. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total transaction of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 806,537 shares in the company, valued at $167,267,708.43. This represents a 4.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 65,767 shares of company stock worth $12,802,440. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 4.6%

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $215.42 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.07 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $188.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.82. The company has a market cap of $25.72 billion, a PE ratio of 23.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.58.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.04%.

Williams-Sonoma 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.