Impact Investors Inc Lowers Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Impact Investors Inc decreased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 28.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,145 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 2,420 shares during the quarter. Williams-Sonoma makes up approximately 0.8% of Impact Investors Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Impact Investors Inc’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,120,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 81.8% in the 4th quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych PZU SA now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $218.90 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $161.76 and a fifty-two week high of $244.65. The company has a market cap of $25.78 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.49. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $205.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $199.68.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 53.29%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. 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 payout ratio is currently 22.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 938,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,998,627.64. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, 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 business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.49, for a total transaction of $254,080.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 51,634 shares of company stock worth $9,812,283 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $185.00 to $218.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, June 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $190.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $212.65.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.