New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 4,289 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 5.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 75,295 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 4,289 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $14,716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 37.9% during the 3rd quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 16,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,205,000 after purchasing an additional 4,510 shares during the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the third quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 14,593 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,852,000 after buying an additional 4,961 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 153.7% during the second quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 12,279 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,016,000 after buying an additional 7,439 shares during the last quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 54.9% in the second quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 24,245 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,961,000 after buying an additional 8,592 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1,705.3% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 118,371 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $19,338,000 after acquiring an additional 111,814 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 4.4%

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $213.75 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $192.96 and a 200 day moving average of $193.04. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.07 and a 52 week high of $219.54. The company has a market cap of $25.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.64.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 53.10%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $201.00.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total value of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 806,537 shares in the company, valued at $167,267,708.43. This trade represents a 4.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total value of $157,357.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,236 shares in the company, valued at $2,715,497.76. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 65,767 shares of company stock valued at $12,802,440. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.