HS Management Partners LLC Sells 125,890 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

HS Management Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 48.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 132,417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 125,890 shares during the quarter. Williams-Sonoma makes up about 3.4% of HS Management Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. HS Management Partners LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $25,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 37.9% in the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 16,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,205,000 after acquiring an additional 4,510 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 153.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 12,279 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 7,439 shares in the last quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 54.9% in the 2nd quarter. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC now owns 24,245 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,961,000 after purchasing an additional 8,592 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 816,176 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $133,029,000 after purchasing an additional 60,163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1,705.3% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 118,371 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $19,338,000 after purchasing an additional 111,814 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $197.82 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $185.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.95. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $130.07 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98. The firm has a market cap of $23.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.58.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Friday, January 16th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on WSM shares. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. UBS Group set a $175.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $198.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 12,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.07, for a total transaction of $2,201,992.27. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 846,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $153,353,071.89. The trade was a 1.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.10% of the stock is currently 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.