Williams Sonoma CEO Sells 14% Of Stock

Lester Howard, chairman and CEO of multichannel marketer Williams-Sonoma, sold 1 million shares of his company’s stock in two separate transactions during this past week. The sales leave him with just over 6.2 million shares, or around 6%, of the company’s stock.

On Oct. 13, Howard sold 350,000 shares, valued at $12.63 per share, for a total of $4,420,500. The next day, he sold an additional 650,000 share at $13.17 per share, for $8,560,500. Together, the two transactions put nearly $13 million into Howard’s pockets.

Or did it? According to the Associated Press, Howard sold the stock to meet margin loan calls. According to the AP, a margin loan is when a brokerage house allows a customer to buy stocks on credit, provided the customer offers collateral. If a stock dips below a certain point, the brokerage house has the right to demand payment, the AP said.

During the past 12 months, Williams-Sonoma’s stock price has fluctuated between $11.86 and $31.88 per share. On Thursday, the stock closed at $12.52, up 42 cents from the previous day’s close.