Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Boothbay Fund Management LLC

Boothbay Fund Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 37.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,225 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 15,376 shares during the quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $4,856,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WSM. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth $290,121,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 19,941.2% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 495,619 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $91,779,000 after buying an additional 493,146 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at about $87,148,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $158,085,000 after buying an additional 467,407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 64.1% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 989,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $183,273,000 after acquiring an additional 386,500 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 915 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.69, for a total transaction of $129,646.35. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $6,572,715.72. The trade was a 1.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total value of $4,973,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,018,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $168,826,041.72. This represents a 2.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 76,635 shares of company stock valued at $12,609,055. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $151.24 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $173.11. The company has a market cap of $18.68 billion, a PE ratio of 17.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.76. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.44 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 29.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on WSM. Barclays upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. KeyCorp raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $181.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $179.06.

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.