Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Stake Cut by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 63.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,263 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 8,989 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $940,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth approximately $254,778,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $443,566,000 after purchasing an additional 532,995 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 4,142.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 478,072 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $93,439,000 after purchasing an additional 466,804 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 307.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 600,526 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $117,373,000 after buying an additional 453,214 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 623.0% in the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 394,310 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $64,418,000 after buying an additional 339,771 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 2.0%

WSM stock opened at $171.87 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $185.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.49. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $147.39 and a 12 month high of $222.00. The company has a market capitalization of $20.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted 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 net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 51.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.28 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 29.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WSM. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $180.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $209.06.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total transaction of $3,660,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 786,537 shares in the company, valued at $143,967,732.48. This trade represents a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total transaction 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,370 shares of company stock valued at $13,268,623. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

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.