Vise Technologies Inc. Makes New Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,621 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,543,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WSM. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,248,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $227,000. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,644,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 4,153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $678,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,631 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $757,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM opened at $237.34 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $232.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $207.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.58, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $165.51 and a one year high of $254.89.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.85 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, July 17th were issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 34.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total value of $3,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 923,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $184,704,800. This trade represents a 1.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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 Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,156 shares of company stock worth $3,738,699. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, June 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $192.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, July 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.88.

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.