Bison Wealth LLC Invests $232,000 in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,150 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 863.6% in the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 229.8% in the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 277 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total transaction of $685,732.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at $15,185,328.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total value of $685,732.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,364 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,185,328.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 1,145 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.06, for a total value of $330,973.70. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,966 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,013,591.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,145 shares of company stock valued at $12,182,219. Corporate insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $282.23 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $109.44 and a 1-year high of $319.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.70. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $266.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $211.90.

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

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.13 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $4.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WSM. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $260.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley raised Williams-Sonoma from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $155.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $154.00 to $263.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $315.00 to $300.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.06.

Williams-Sonoma 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.