Shulman DeMeo Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Shulman DeMeo Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 98.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 14,286 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,082 shares during the period. Williams-Sonoma makes up about 0.5% of Shulman DeMeo Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Shulman DeMeo Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $2,213,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WSM. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth $26,000. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth $29,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 520.0% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 93 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,040,099. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total value of $5,810,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,766,978.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total value of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Friday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wedbush decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.83.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of WSM traded up $2.00 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $148.12. The stock had a trading volume of 1,638,600 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,934,273. The company’s 50-day moving average is $141.83 and its 200 day moving average is $146.42. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.56 and a 12-month high of $174.26. The company has a market capitalization of $19.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.74.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.57% and a net margin of 14.29%. Williams-Sonoma’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.01%.

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.