Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Shares Purchased by Saudi Central Bank

Saudi Central Bank boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 89.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,331 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,925 shares during the period. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,942,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at $2,656,062,000. Aristotle Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 22.0% in the 1st quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 11,140,471 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,031,242,000 after purchasing an additional 2,009,032 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,139,477 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,961,000 after purchasing an additional 147,780 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,664,580 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $485,833,000 after purchasing an additional 224,128 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.3% in the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 130,940 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.39, for a total value of $128,615.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,975,846.05. This represents a 2.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 2,634 shares of company stock valued at $632,696 over the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $227.12 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $232.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $208.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.25, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.47. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $165.51 and a 52-week high of $254.89.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The specialty retailer reported $2.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.93 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.73% and a return on equity of 53.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.00 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 31.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WSM. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $260.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Seaport Research Partners reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, August 14th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $261.00 price objective (up from $250.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $260.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $245.56.

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.