Insider Selling: Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) CEO Sells 2,184 Shares of Stock

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total value of $685,732.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at $15,185,328.72. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $317.53 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $20.36 billion, a PE ratio of 21.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.66. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $109.44 and a 52 week high of $319.70. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $241.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $197.67.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.06 by $0.38. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 55.15% and a net margin of 12.25%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.50 EPS. Williams-Sonoma's quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend


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The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a $1.13 dividend. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 863.6% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 212 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 229.8% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 277 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $154.00 to $263.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Barclays increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $298.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $330.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $249.31.

Read Our Latest Report on WSM

About Williams-Sonoma

(Get Free Report)

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.

See Also

Insider Buying and Selling by Quarter for Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM)

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