Fifth Third Bancorp Has $1.80 Million Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 209.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,194 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 6,220 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Groupe la Francaise increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 631 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 25.1% during the third quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC now owns 274 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.4% in the third quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC now owns 16,099 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,146,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Eukles Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Eukles Asset Management now owns 12,575 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,458,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 1,293 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM opened at $210.85 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $201.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $195.75. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.07 and a 52 week high of $221.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.64.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 29.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on WSM. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $202.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total transaction of $157,357.72. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 13,236 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,715,497.76. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total transaction of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 806,537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,267,708.43. The trade was a 4.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 65,767 shares of company stock worth $12,802,440 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

About Williams-Sonoma

Williams‑Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi‑brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher‑end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.