National Pension Service Reduces Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

National Pension Service lessened its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 260,062 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 5,301 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $60,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 21,796.7% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 36,913,716 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $8,604,587,000 after purchasing an additional 36,745,135 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,656,062,000. Aristotle Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 22.0% during the first quarter. Aristotle Capital Management LLC now owns 11,140,471 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,031,242,000 after acquiring an additional 2,009,032 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,139,477 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,961,000 after acquiring an additional 147,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.2% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,664,580 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $485,833,000 after acquiring an additional 224,128 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Argus increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 31st. Credit Suisse Group set a $261.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, July 27th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $253.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $247.00 price target (up from $190.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $245.56.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of WSM stock opened at $226.50 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $165.51 and a 12-month high of $254.89. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $232.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $209.32. The company has a market cap of $26.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.18, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.47.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The specialty retailer reported $2.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.02. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.48% and a net margin of 14.73%.The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Williams-Sonoma

Here are the key news stories impacting Williams-Sonoma this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Broad earnings-estimate increases: Zacks Research raised its estimates for fiscal 2027 EPS to $9.52 from $9.28 and fiscal 2028 EPS to $10.70 from $10.26. It also lifted estimates for several quarterly periods, including Q2 2028 to $2.44 from $2.19 and Q1 2029 to $2.26 from $2.20. These revisions indicate improving expectations for Williams-Sonoma’s operating performance. MarketBeat analyst estimate report
• Positive Sentiment: Positive cash-flow and value appeal: A recent investment article included Williams-Sonoma among cash-producing companies on its buy list, which may reinforce the stock’s appeal to investors seeking profitable businesses with strong cash generation. Cash-producing stock article
• Neutral Sentiment: Increased investor attention: Williams-Sonoma is currently a trending stock on Zacks.com. The article highlights factors investors should monitor, but it does not announce a material business development or provide a definitive new price target. Williams-Sonoma trending stock article
• Neutral Sentiment: Relative-value discussion: Zacks compared Williams-Sonoma with Alliance Laundry Holdings, leaving investors to weigh which home-furnishings stock offers the better value. The analysis could support WSM if it is viewed as undervalued, but it also highlights valuation as an important consideration. Alliance Laundry Holdings versus Williams-Sonoma value comparison
• Negative Sentiment: Some estimates were reduced: Zacks lowered its Q4 2028 EPS forecast to $3.53 from $3.61 and fiscal 2029 EPS to $11.31 from $11.41. These modest cuts suggest analysts see some uncertainty in longer-term growth, partially offsetting the broader upward revisions.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 522 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $246.39, for a total transaction of $128,615.58. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 20,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,975,846.05. The trade was a 2.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,634 shares of company stock valued at $632,696. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on high-quality home furnishings, housewares and lifestyle products. The company sells furniture, bedding, bath goods, lighting, rugs, window treatments, home décor, kitchen equipment, cookware, tabletop products, outdoor furnishings and related accessories through e-commerce platforms, catalogs and retail stores.

The company operates a portfolio of brands that includes Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, Pottery Barn Teen, West Elm, Mark & Graham and Rejuvenation.