Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) CEO Sells $3,000,000.00 in Stock

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) CEO Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 923,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,704,800. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Laura Alber also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, May 14th, Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total transaction of $3,452,200.00.
• On Friday, April 17th, Laura Alber sold 15,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.00, for a total transaction of $3,000,000.00.
• On Monday, March 16th, Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total transaction of $3,660,800.00.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of WSM stock opened at $203.89 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $24.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.51. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $152.20 and a fifty-two week high of $222.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $185.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $191.88.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 53.29%. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 17th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.56%.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,878 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 25.1% during the third quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 274 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 10,438 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,864,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 1,381 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $210.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $208.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $209.06.

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.