Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC Sells 394 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC reduced its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 1.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,491 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 394 shares during the quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bogart Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 863.6% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 229.8% in the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 277 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 535.1% in the first quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. 99.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares in the company, valued at $7,630,201.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $15,000,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 565,835 shares in the company, valued at $84,875,250. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,630,201.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 130,000 shares of company stock worth $19,496,290. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $178.81 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $109.44 and a fifty-two week high of $181.46. The company has a market capitalization of $11.84 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $152.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.35.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 16th. The specialty retailer reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $1.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 61.68% and a net margin of 11.99%. On average, analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 13.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 20th will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 19th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 24th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $127.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $153.28.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.