Moran Wealth Management LLC Has $35.35 Million Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Moran Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 197,953 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 14,711 shares during the quarter. Williams-Sonoma makes up approximately 1.1% of Moran Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $35,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,644,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 9.0% during the second quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 4,153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 4,631 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $757,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total value of $3,660,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 786,537 shares in the company, valued at $143,967,732.48. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 56,370 shares of company stock worth $10,268,623. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 3.8%

NYSE:WSM opened at $198.78 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $134.44 and a twelve month high of $222.00. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $193.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $192.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.66 billion, a PE ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.58.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.14. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.45% and a net margin of 13.94%.The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.28 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 29.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on WSM. Citigroup increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $188.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $206.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Evercore set a $200.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.56.

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.