Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Buys Shares of 263 Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 263 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $53,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 129.3% during the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth about $32,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted 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 purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of WSM opened at $281.70 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $109.44 and a 52-week high of $319.78. The company has a market capitalization of $18.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.70. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $274.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $216.87.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.06 by $0.38. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 55.15% and a net margin of 12.25%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.50 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WSM. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $200.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $320.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $248.06.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 17,816 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.19, for a total transaction of $5,490,713.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,140,909.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 17,816 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $308.19, for a total transaction of $5,490,713.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 68,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,140,909.43. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 505,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,433,123.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,145 shares of company stock worth $12,182,219. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.