Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lowered its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,051 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 43,360 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned approximately 0.10% of Williams-Sonoma worth $23,342,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after acquiring an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after buying an additional 1,393,436 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 104.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,105,336 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $171,239,000 after buying an additional 565,745 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $160,537,000 after acquiring an additional 792,068 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $158,085,000 after acquiring an additional 467,407 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $164.57 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $125.33 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.06.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.44 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wedbush lowered their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, March 17th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $177.93.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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.