PKS Advisory Services LLC Makes New Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

PKS Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,545 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $842,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 4.1 %

NYSE WSM opened at $170.32 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $196.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $172.90. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.33 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The stock has a market cap of $20.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Gordon Haskett upgraded Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $177.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.