Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 11.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,173 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 147 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 820.0% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total transaction of $685,732.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 48,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,185,328.72. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.74, for a total value of $5,674,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $143,433,123.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Marta Benson sold 2,184 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.98, for a total transaction of $685,732.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 48,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,185,328.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,145 shares of company stock worth $12,182,219 in the last 90 days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $282.16 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $275.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $217.72. The company has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.70. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.44 and a twelve month high of $319.78.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.06 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a $1.13 dividend. This represents a $4.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 31.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WSM shares. Loop Capital boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $220.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $330.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $248.06.

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.